Common Ground
by Neon Daisies
Summary: Tony's thinking about learned behavioral patterns as he starts swiveling his chair back and forth to help calm his child. An addendum to In Absence by NeonDaisies and 4persephone. Mature themes.
1. Chapter 1

**Author's note:** hey'ya there, peeps. I don't need to preface any of this with an apology for an update lag (imagine that!), because this is a NEW story. :D

This is a collaboration between 4persephone and myself, as usual for all but my own two ficlets, and it's kinda a long addendum to In Absence. Ton y and Pepper and Aaron are all back in LA, but despite being home, things aren't perfect yet. Which is how life is. So this is our invitation to you peek inside the lives of these two with us.

As for updates, well, I'M mostly free now (except I'm going through a cycle where I want to reread every book I own), but 4persephone's gonna be having a baby here soon (feel free to leave congratulations for the soon-to-be new mama here), and we don't exactly know how our writing sessions will be going after that. Hopefully, she'll be up late with baby a lot, since she's a few timezones ahead of me.

Anyway, enjoy, and we'll update as we can. :D Reviews are appreciated, as always.

**Disclaimer:** if I owned Iron Man or anyone associated with it, I'd probably still write fanfic, but then it wouldn't be fanfic. It'd be canon. Lucky for the Iron Man 'verse I'm on the outside looking in. Credit Stan Lee, Universal, Marvel, and whoever else for intellectual property. Credit Jon Favreau, Mark Fergus & Hawk Ostby, Robert Downey Jr., Gwyneth Paltrow, et al for bringing them to life.

* * *

Pepper Stark is at ease in the lavish office, even as she sits with scary propriety on the edge of her chair, back straight. She scans the paper in front of her with a frown, not liking what she sees.

No, that's not quite true. To be more accurate, Pepper can't quite _believe_ what she sees.

She closes the file folder and slides it towards one Gary Larson, Tony's personal lawyer. "I'd like to see the real post-nuptial agreement, please."

"Pardon me?" Gary looks up from the stack of papers sitting in front of him on the desk.

"I believe you must have our file mixed up with some other insanely wealthy – or possibly just plain insane – newlywed billionaire." Not that Pepper believes that for an instant, but without Tony present, she has no one else to express her disbelief to. When she'd called him at the office as she'd been leaving the house, he'd told her he'd be on his way himself. But he's not here yet…though that might be a good thing. She can probably convince Gary to see reason.

This kind of…_largesse_…is not in Tony's best interests. And not only is she his personal assistant – and therefore responsible for looking after his best interests – but she's his wife. The job description is more or less the same. The fact that this agreement offends her on some indefinable personal level is beside the point.

Gary frowns and looks at the innocuous manila folder lying on his desk. "I assume you reached the section outlining alimony and the division of property in the event of a divorce."

"Yes." Pepper crosses her legs and leans forward to rest her hands on the desk. "It's your job to keep him from doing things like this, Gary."

Gary's expression is wry as he nods a little. "Mr. Stark and I have had several long discussions about the document, yes."

"In which you talked a lot, he nodded, and then repeated his original directions." Pepper sighs. This does have "classic Tony" written all over it, and if she steps back and looks at the situation, it's kinda...cute. However, his fortune is not a letterman's jacket that he can give to his best girl.

"Mrs. Stark, I'll be the first to admit I find the specifics of this agreement a bit extreme...but part of my service to Mr. Stark on this matter was to make sure this document would be legally uncontestable by anyone - including those on the Board of Directors. His reasoning and documentation of why this is _not_ an unreasonable amount was difficult argument to combat."

"Difficult because he didn't let you get a word in edgewise, or because he poured on the charm?"

"Why couldn't it have been that I was just right, Pepper?" Tony strolls in the door, Gary's secretary fluttering in his wake. His hair and tie are both out of order, but his eyes are relaxed…something that's not always the case recently when he's been at the office. Especially when he's been there without her.

Gary looks a little relieved. "I'm sorry we started without you, Sir..." He looks to Pepper. "He suspected the two of you might have some things to discuss once you had a chance to see this."

"Mmm..." Pepper watches Tony sit down in the chair beside her. Well, he slouches into it, another indicator of his mood. If he's taken a reading of her own mood, he doesn't seem concerned.

"I think we're going to need a minute, Gar." Tony says the words lightly.

Pepper sees a rare opportunity to get her husband home early. "Actually Mr. Larson, I suggest we schedule a meeting to wrap this up tomorrow afternoon. Aaron has a bit of a cold today and could use some extra 'Dad' time. Besides, it would probably be wise for Tony and me to discuss this at length over dinner tonight."

"Pepper...why come back tomorrow if we can wrap this up today?"

The look she gives him is silent but to the point. He straightens in his seat and sighs. "There's no way in hell I'm persuading you to sign today, is there?"

"I'd like to discuss the specifics with you," she replies mildly. It's a polite way of agreeing with him.

Tony sighs, looking momentarily weary, though, she's quick to note, not particularly surprised. Then he looks over at Gary. "How does 3 pm tomorrow look for your schedule?"

Gary flips open the daily schedule book sitting on his desk. "I'll have thirty minutes to see you at 3:15 pm tomorrow. As long as we're talking about signing and not redrawing, that'll be fine."

Pepper's voice is dry. "We'll call in the morning if we have to redraft it."

* * *

Having her own personal bodyguards is still something she's getting used to. Pepper collects hers outside the law offices. Happy's with them, which helps. It means she can relegate them as something that belongs to Tony and focus on composing arguments for the coming discussion. It's a task, because all her disagreements thus far total to "the Board of Directors won't like it."

Well, there's also the phrase "media frenzy," but that's even less helpful than bringing the Board into things. Besides, given his shaky relationship with most of the members of the Board at the moment, bringing them into any discussion makes her feel as if she's using them as a threat.

By the time they've reached the relative privacy of the car, Pepper's still got nothing but the feeling in her gut that makes her very uncomfortable about signing the document upstairs. Even the copy of it in her hand seems conspicuous.

Tony doesn't share her feelings about the matter. He's too distracted by their fussing son to notice much of anything else. "I thought you may have been overstating...but he is looking pretty snotty," he says as he takes the boy from Kara, their certified black belt nanny/baby bodyguard. She moves around to sit up front with Happy. Tony barely notices as he allows Pepper to get into the car first. "Think we need to get his pediatrician to make a house call again?"

The corners of Pepper's lips turn up. "He doesn't have a fever and he's eating fine. The doctor's just going to recommend we encourage extra fluids."

"You sound certain." Tony tries to clean up Aaron's face with a Kleenex, which makes the infant start squalling.

"I already called," Pepper admits, because this at least is something that's easy to explain her reaction to. She's a first time mother and her baby is sick; she calls a doctor. Problem solved. "He said that if things haven't started to clear up in another twenty-four hours to go ahead and bring him in. In the meantime, it is allergy season."

Tony nods as he chases Aaron's nose with the tissue. The little boy is tossing his head and still squalling at the top of his lungs. "He didn't seem to have so many respiratory infections in Savannah. Do you think maybe the drier climate's not setting well with him?"

"We can put a humidifier in the nursery and see if it helps, but probably we should all just start washing our hands more often. Here, let me." Pepper takes Aaron and the tissue away from Tony. Aaron - like any infant – doesn't like having his nose wiped. However, the best way around that is to just get it _done_...and Tony's trying to be nice about it.

She ignores the baby's indignant whining long enough to clear his breathing passages, then hands him back to his father. The puppy dog look that Aaron produces – once he's no longer under threat of having his nose wiped - makes her roll her eyes. "Oh no you don't. You're too young to be this good at imitating your uncle's hang dog expression."

"I prefer to think he's been learning from the master, Pepper." Tony pops the first few buttons on his dress shirt then slouches down on the wide seat and settles Aaron against his chest. "Com'on, little man. A nap is just what you need."

This seems to be the right course of action; as his cheek comes to a rest against Tony's chest, the baby almost immediately stops fussing. Pepper watches as Aaron takes such a deep sigh that his little body shudders before relaxing. She just soaks in the scene with a sense of contentment and the knowledge that she is _so_ lucky. "He's been missing you lately, since you started this marathon of corporate meetings at the office. I think I'm going to start scheduling a half hour longer in your lunch break to bring him up for a visit."

Tony nods. "The good news is the paperwork tsunami should start receding soon. All but one of the project teams is back on target, and all the department heads have been briefed." He lets out a jaw-splitting yawn before resting his own head back against the seat.

Pepper reaches over and starts combing her fingers through his hair. "Maybe I should be putting Aaron _and_ you down for a nap when we get home. That way you'll be rested up for our epic battle later."

Tony groans. "Can't we just solve it by a game of darts, or maybe rock/paper/scissors?"

"You cheat." His hair is getting slightly too long again. Time to schedule another appointment with his hairdresser.

"You do realize this is one of those times that I'm going to be what you so charmingly call 'Stupidly Stubborn?'" he warns her cautiously.

"Yeah. I figured that out. I guess I'll just have to be annoyingly pigheaded in return."

"Face it, Pep: you and I have always had a talent for intense negotiation..." He's grinning a little as he says that, cracking one of his eyes back open, and Pepper can see by his evil little smirk that he's recalling the last time her contract had to be renewed.

"That's why I referred to it as an _epic_ battle." She leans down to kiss the tip of his nose, then slides down on the seat herself so that she can rest her head on his shoulder. "Other than our seeing less than eye to eye, how's your day been?"

"Long. Boring? How hard would it be to hide two bodies in our backyard?"

"That depends on how deep you dig the graves." Her lips curve up into a smile. "Who do I need to be sending e-mails to?"

Tony sighs. "No one. They're not wrong, as irritating as that is, just really, _really_ annoying..."

"Well, tomorrow's supposed to be my half day at the office but I could just bring along Aaron and a playpen, and camp in your office for the entire day. That way you'd get to see him when you're not in meetings, and I'd be on hand to help smooth things over with the 'annoying but not wrong' people."

Tony's eyes light up with something like hope, but then he looks down at the little boy lying on his chest and sighs deeply.

"I don't know if that's such a good idea, Pepper –"

"It is." Her hand slides from his hair to his cheek. "And not just because he helps to relax you. Look at how easily he's stopped fussing. I've had to wait until he gets more tired than stubborn before I can get him to nap."

"Yeah, but he's already sick. Bringing him into a building full of new germs seems a little dangerous. Everything I've read on the subject says preemies take longer to build up their immune systems."

"Yes. They do. That doesn't mean you need to seal them in a sterile bubble." She shifts her head on his shoulder so that she can see his face better. "Getting more sleep would help him get over this faster, Tony. Besides, it'd only be for a few hours." She tilts her head back down into a position that doesn't strain her neck before offering her ultimatum. "It's either that, or you could start coming here in the mornings as normal and then returning to the house by two with the rest of your work."

"You know that they want me more accessible than that, Pepper." Tony's voice is aggrieved.

"Yes, I do. And I'm trying to find a compromise. In the end though we'll decide on what's best for our family, and everyone else is just going to have to deal with it." She pokes him lightly in the shoulder. "You don't have to try and make up for nine months of missed work in the first month back at home, you know. If you keep up this pace much longer, you're going to collapse."

Tony shrugs. "There's just so much that needs doing. Believe me, I don't want to keep these kind of hours. But someone has to deal with the current mess. While I was out Human Resources hired some real fucking idiots."

Charming he might be, but when it came down to it, a people person Tony was not. She just has to smile at his declaration. "Tomorrow's my half day," she repeats. "Let me deal with the problem people, Tony. It's what I do best."

He finally gives in, nodding his head as he stifles another yawn. "All right. You and the sprout can join me tomorrow, and while we're there you can help me figure out how to fire that asshole from Public Relations. He can't seem to grasp the concept of 'absolutely no baby photo-spreads.'"

Pepper's mouth tightens. "This has been a recurrent conversation between the two of you?"

Tony looks bashful and starts mumbling something about wanting to get the post-nup signed before he told her something that would really get her on the warpath. "Yeah. He says we're idiots to ignore how much the stock could go up with the positive publicity. And he's shared that thought with several members of the Board, who've then tracked me down to add their own two-cents."

Tony watches, half-mesmerized, as Pepper's nostrils flare. It's not often that she gets this upset and it's _not_ with him. It's a treat, really, to watch. "Leave the 'idiots' to me," she repeats, in a tone that promises a primly delivered but unforgettable speech in somebody's future.

Tony nods, more than happy to hand this over so Pepper can do her worst. "Just be warned, they're not going to back down easily. After all, what 'harm' is there in me letting him 'play a part in the dynasty' like my parents did with me?"

"The difference is that it was another world then," Pepper says, though she tries not to sound upset.

Tony's expression is wry. "You're preaching to the choir, Pep. Remember?" What Tony doesn't say is what Pepper realizes after a moment that he can't bring himself to. Namely that the argument the Board is using is especially difficult for Tony to combat.

His parenting choices are being subtly compared to those of his parents. They're daring him to criticize the way he was raised, and he doesn't want to do that. It's a blatant emotional manipulation that only increases Pepper's sense of resentment.

"Tony..." She doesn't know what to say, because there are so many ways in which they still trip over each other and each other's feelings. But _something_ needs to be said, if only to help ease his mind. He's struggling so hard to be a good father, and good husband, and good businessman, and it's taking a toll he won't admit to. Saying something now is the least she can do. "Your parents...in a way they had it easier. No one was pressuring them to put their infant on the cover of US Weekly. No one would have even thought about it back then. When they did release photos of you, it was because you'd done something important...and it was to Popular Mechanics. What the PR department wants us to do is something completely different. They don't want to focus on anything that Aaron has achieved. They're asking us to use him. And for all that your parents did expose you to the media, I can't see that it was ever about using you to make themselves look better."

Tony nods. "And I know all that logically. But with certain people in this debate it's like talking to a brick wall."

"You should have told me about this sooner," Pepper gently chides him. Her eyes are too understanding; they can probably see every ounce of his weariness with the whole ordeal. "People expect you to do your duty by the company. But I'm the mother, and after the way I took off last winter, no one is going to be too surprised if I become unreasonable and put my foot down about this. They're still treating me with kid gloves, half-afraid that I'm going to take off again if I get too upset. Yes, it's condescending at times, but we can still use that to our advantage, Tony."

He nods. "I think you're right. Though I'm also thinking after this next project launches in another month you and I should take a long weekend as well."

It's the first time in two months Tony has even suggested _not_ working on a Saturday, which Pepper's smart enough to recognize as sign that he's closer to serious exhaustion than even she realized.

'So say yes and take a couple days off. He'll probably sleep through the first 24 hours but I can live with that, if it means having him with no distractions the other 48.'

"What did you have in mind?" she asks as she tries to settle back down. "Just hanging around the house, or a short trip to one of the other houses?"

"Home is fine. Though I also wouldn't object to a trip up the coast if we could manage to find a hidey-hole away from the phones and Paparazzi."

"I could start looking for a little house to rent somewhere around San Francisco," she offers. "We could spend a few days wandering around Pier 39, Fisherman's Wharf…do the tourist thing from behind hats and sunglasses."

Tony nods. "That would be fun, though you and the monkey will definitely need to slather on the sunscreen."

Pepper smiles. "That could probably be arranged."

Tony's smile grows a little warmer. "I could probably even be convinced to help _you_ in said application."

"Yeah?" She has to grin as his arm snakes around her waist. "You wouldn't have any ulterior motives for that offer, would you, Mr. Stark?"

"I might," he admits without the faintest hint of guilt.

"I've been warned about men like you," she teases him. "You with your good looks, and your sweet talk."

"Warned, huh?" He leans over to kiss her gently.

"Yeah..." she murmurs against his lips.

"About what?"

"That you're hard to dissuade once you've put your heart into something." Which is something that she tries not to let get to her. They..._she_...is still trying to work through her issues. Not that Tony has been anything but patient and supportive, but she's getting impatient with herself. She _knows_ she has his heart in her hands, knows that she's given him more of herself than she's ever given anyone else. But just like there's something about the contract she's supposed to sign, there's something she can't quite identify that's holding her back from surrendering everything to him, including her fears.

"I suppose at times I can be a little bit stubborn," Tony acknowledges, aware enough of the tension tightening her frame to shift from a sensual to a comforting touch. "But then I tend to know a damn good thing when I see it."

"Trust me, I'm not complaining." It's a lot of responsibility though, trying to keep from hurting him. With that in mind, she makes a conscious effort to relax against him again. It's not him that's making her tense, it's her own perceived shortcomings. "Maybe I'll join you for a nap when we get home." That way he won't feel like she's trying to pull away.

"You, me and the munchkin all cuddled up and unconscious? Follow that with steak on the grill and this is a plan I can totally get into." He grins and carefully offers Pepper back her sleeping son as Happy slows the car. The new security gates loom in front of them, waiting to verify their driver's identity. The need for the gates had become glaringly apparent almost from the moment they'd arrived back in LA; the mob waiting outside of Edwards Air Force Base had been monumental, and really only held back because the base was government property and no one had really wanted to deal with _that_ trespassing charge.

Anyway, this new, lower set of gates had been needed to keep even the most long-range cameras out of sight from the house. Pepper waits with resignation for Aaron to stir as the car comes to a stop, and he does fuss a little and wipe his snotty nose on her shirt, but a hand to the back of his head calms him and he falls still once more. "We might actually get him indoors without waking him," she murmurs to Tony.

Tony nods as they move past the first set of gates. The house is within view in seconds. "I'll get the doors so you won't jostle him. Are you going to put him in the nursery this time, or in the master bassinet?"

"I thought I'd put him in the nursery. It'd be nice to be able to talk without being afraid of waking him up." Things have been hectic since they've gotten back, but Pepper's tried to ensure that the habits they started in Georgia continue here. Even if they only got fifteen minutes a day to speak honestly and frankly with each other, it was more than worth it in the long run. They both needed those short reality checks in order to keep up to date with each other.

Tony nods. "Also better in case I start snoring. Not to mention Jarvis won't wake Aaron for any emergency phone calls."

They're dropped off in front of the house minutes later. Tony does get the front door and predictably, Jarvis's subroutines kick into gear the moment the door closes behind them. "Welcome home, Mr. Stark -" he says at full volume.

Tony raises a finger to his lips. "Hold out on the usual run down, old man, until the munchkin is tucked in."

"Affirmative sir." Jarvis promptly falls quiet.

Pepper smiles. "Why don't you go get dinner out of the freezer and put it on the thaw board so it's ready to cook when we get up?" she suggests softly. "I'll meet you in the bedroom once I get Aaron down."

By the time Pepper emerges from the nursery, it's to find Tony's work clothes in puddles on the floor of the master bedroom. He's not in the room though, and she follows his voice down the hall. "No, no, no. You've still got an error in the specs. I told you to fix this _last week_."

She sighs and addresses the overhead comm system. "Jarvis, block all non-emergency calls once he gets off the phone. Unless Mick calls long distance or there's blood directly involved we're unreachable for the rest of the evening."

* * *


	2. Chapter 2

After receiving confirmation from Jarvis, Pepper returns to the master suite and changes her clothes. Even though she's working from home for the most part, she still makes the effort to dress professionally. Though there's other reasons for it – she does have some interaction with other people - mainly it keeps her from feeling sloppy all day. However, their workday is over now, and her black suit jacket has snot stains across the shoulder. For a nap and dinner in, yoga pants and one of Tony's t-shirts is more than sufficient.

When Tony finally re-enters the master bedroom it's in similar attire - though in this case he's omitted any top at all in favor of loose sweat pants and warmly socked feet.

She takes the space of a heartbeat to assess his physical condition. His skin is pale, yes, but not of an unnatural pallor. The muscles of his arms and chest are slim but growing more developed, the result, she knows, of regular hours spent in physical therapy. The almost six-pack is starting to look pretty good on him.

"Well?" Pepper looks up from her visual examination. Tony's got one eyebrow raised; he crosses his arms over his chest. "Do I look like I'm about to keel over?"

She blushes. "No. Quite the opposite really."

Tony doesn't preen - well not exactly - but she doesn't miss the pleased little upturn of his lips. "Note to self, keep hitting the corporate gym three early mornings a week with Rhodey."

"As long as you go to bed early those three days a week," she teases in reply. "Or you'll fall asleep over supper in the evenings."

"Pepper, I agreed to take a nap. What more do you want from me?" Tony asks, as if going to bed early on top of that is unreasonable. Still, he yawns and stretches his arms over his head for several long seconds that leave her with a pretty good view of his body.

"I want you to take as good care of yourself as you do of Aaron and I," she replies once she has his full attention again.

He glances at her as he moves toward the bed. "There's only so many hours in the day, Pep. You have to compromise somewhere."

"I know, I know, I just..." She shrugs a little as he slips under the covers. "In Savannah I got used to cuddling up next to you in bed. It's not the same anymore when you're not there beside me."

It's a half truth. She does miss her personal heater whenever Aaron gives her enough time to catch up on her sleep, but the shape he was in when they first crossed paths in Savannah is still vivid in her memory. She never wants to see him so run down again, never wants to wait out another tachycardia attack with him.

Tony nods, scooting closer to her on the bed. "I promise...once this project launches we should see enough of an uptick in production and the stocks for me to start keeping sane hours. In the meantime…" He yawns once more, tucking her in firmly against his chest. "I can probably manage to get out of the office most days by four pm."

Pepper chews the inside of her lip. That's not much of a concession. He's supposed to be working six hours a day at _most_, though sometimes she has a hard time deciding if the time he spends looking over blueprints truly counts as "working" when it's what he'd be doing anyway if he had any free time.

Perhaps a full lunch hour is the best way she's going to get him to slow down at all, whether Aaron needs "daddy time" or not.

"The evening stuff is mostly development and research clean up anyway, and I don't care if Aaron drools on my rough schematics if I happen to be holding him." Tony chuckles, explaining when he catches her looking at him curiously, "What I'd really like is to teach him to spit up on certain deserving individuals." He laughs again at Pepper's scolding look. "I know I'll never get to _do_ it, but leave me the fantasy at least."

"If that's your idea of a fantasy life, we've got problems, Stark." Pepper smiles against his shoulder.

His hands trail along her back. "I didn't say it was my only one." He bends down for another kiss – this one a little longer and starkly more intense…

Pepper has to admit that kissing Tony Stark has quickly become addictive. The man knows exactly what to do to turn her into mush, if that's what he wants. It's when he wants responsive mush that her heart starts beating faster, though even then it's not out of fear.

At least, not totally. There's a thrill of anticipation present that's more or less new to her since she's been with Tony. She doesn't think that this is one of those times where he's going to push her boundaries, but the fact that he has and he does is enough to put her just the tiniest bit on guard. She doesn't want him to ever have to sit by as she freaks out because she let him push further than she's ready to go. Her previous experiences with sex - aside from the thing with Delaney - are something she's only hinted at. Not enough for him to really understand that before him it had never really been about pleasure.

"You're stiffening up a little, Pep. Mind telling me what you're thinking?" Tony's voice is quiet.

"That you make me feel good," she whispers ruefully. Tony just looks at her and then starts shaking his head, which is more or less the reaction she'd be expecting.

"I'm not sure how we're ever going to make you feel _really_ good without you spraining something then."

He moves to settle her back against his side. "No." She hangs on to his shoulders. "Don't stop yet?" Of course, if he wants to stop then that's fine. But they don't need to stop every time she gets a little uneasy. It's rare that he keeps going long enough for her to adjust in the times when she does get tense.

Pepper's beginning to think she's going to have to get them both drunk in order to make some real progress.

"I just...Pepper, I don't like pushing. Especially not in this. This is supposed to be fun. I don't know how you did this before, but -"

"I usually had a couple of drinks in me."

Tony blinks at that. "Excuse me?" He pulls back enough to look directly in her face.

The problem with telling the truth, Pepper realizes as she looks down and starts playing with the hem of her shirt, is that doing so became a conditioned response. The ritual that had accompanied her one night stands hadn't been something she'd wanted him to know about.

"You know...a glass or two of red wine. To relax," she murmurs as if this is no big deal. "I... Look don't take this wrong, Tony. But when I was a kid...my mom wasn't exactly a touchy-feely type. Until I moved into my Dad's, there wasn't anyone who ever even regularly hugged me."

She can feel him looking at her, knows that he probably sees more than she wants him to. He doesn't push for more though, which has become an expected blessing. The more of these kinds of revelations that she makes, the more he lets her make them in her own time.

"Pepper..." He sounds regretful, which isn't what she wants at all.

"No." She shakes her head. "It's not your fault and I'm not saying you should stop. You are...you are _perfect_," she stresses. "I feel so safe with you, Tony. It just...takes a little... help... for me to overcome the _weirdness_ of letting anyone this close. Believe it or not it was worse when I was little, but when we were kids, Mick at least got me used to regular hugs and the occasional play-fighting."

"But anything more intimate requires 'help' involving alcohol?" Tony does his best to sound non-judgmental.

"Yeah...wine chills me out. Makes me less jumpy, I suppose you could say. I figured that out when I was with a friend of sorts back in my first year of college."

"A roommate kind of friend, or a friend with benefits kind of friend?" Tony sighs, and tightens his arms around her. "I'm sorry," he whispers against her hair. "It's none of my business if you don't want to tell me." He leans back a little so that he can look into her face. "And Pepper, you are safe with me. I promise. I will always back off if you tell me to."

"I know." She swallows hard. "It's just..." Pepper tries to smile, and comes up with something that moves her lips into the right shape, even if they tremble. "That part of my life has always been screwed up." She pauses a moment then relaxes a bit when he doesn't challenge that. "As for being jealous...there's no need for it at all. She was nice enough, but the one kiss we shared was plenty of indication I didn't swing the way she did."

Tony groans and finally relaxes himself as he laughs silently. He rolls them slightly so that he can rest with his head on her shoulder. "Someday you're going to stop surprising me," he tells her as he feels her hand come up to start combing through his hair.

"You're surprised I wondered if I swung both ways? Why? You've _met_ my brother, Tony." she points out. "It's not as if I had no reason to at least consider the possibility..." She shakes her head, "The alcohol part of it was more...useful information, anyway."

"If only you'd used that knowledge for good instead of evil," he teases. "Do you know how many times I wished I could see you drunk when you first started working for me?"

"I never get _drunk_, Tony...there's too much risk of bad stuff happening when you're that incapacitated. I've always just stuck with getting a little bit tipsy."

He props up on one elbow to look down at her.

"Don't give me that look," she says immediately. "People who live in glass houses shouldn't throw stones."

He ignores the implication. It's another matter entirely for a man to bring a woman home when he's "tipsy." Women tended to be more physically vulnerable than men even when they weren't intoxicated. "The thing that bothers me about it most, Pep, was the threat that kind of thing had to represent to your safety."

Her lips quirk wryly but she doesn't say anything. She wonders if he'll interpret that as acknowledgement. In reality she'd long ago decided that she'd already suffered through a hell of a lot thanks to her upbringing. It wasn't as if those men she'd gone home with could do much worse to her by that time.

"It's all academic at this point anyway, Tony." She swallows hard; the expression on her face has him expecting that she's going to say something he might not like. "It's not like I'm having one night stands anymore. The question is whether we should take a lesson from history now in the way _we_ push forward with things."

"I -" Tony stops himself; closes his mouth on his instinctive denial of that statement. He doesn't like what it implies, that she needs some sort of aid in order to be close to him. But she's just told him differently. She's told him that she trusts him and that he makes her feel good. Apparently it's just not quite enough to push past her own instinctive defenses.

If he thinks through this logically, he can see how maybe it would help. But he's also not ready to think through it logically yet.

"I'll think about it. We can talk about it more later." He kisses her forehead, then her cheek, and then her shoulder as he sinks back down into the bed. "I see you've stolen another one of my t-shirts."

Pepper shrugs. "It's soft and smells like you. I guess I just like it."

"I'd be worried if you didn't." His words are light, but his mind is still running through the new information this conversation has garnered. It's almost more than Pepper's told him at one time since he'd first seen her in Savannah, and frankly, it's more than he knows how to deal with on his own. What he needs is someone to work through this with, and Mick is his best bet, even if the man is out of the country.

South America has e-mail.

Pepper sighs. "You have that look you get on your face again," she grumbles. "Like your brain has too much new information and is going to _explode_. So much for taking a nap or even relaxing."

He shakes his head and murmurs, "Sleep is actually supposed to help the brain work through things." Tony makes himself focus on Pepper again. For all that she spends most of her day here at the house, she's just as busy as he is, if not more. Not only is she taking care of their son, but she's still working as his personal assistant and trying to recruit someone to fill that position as well as someone to be _her_ assistant. And she's trying to do that in fewer hours than he works, because she wants to set a good example by not doing work during "their" time.

In short, she needs the break as much as he does.

They lie there in silence for several seconds, Tony becoming more and more relaxed by the sensation of his wife resting comfortably in his arms. There's something seductive about it, though not in a sexual sense. More of an insidiously subtle invitation to admit to weariness. "You know, I'm growing more and more tempted to take a cue from Aaron and have you call me in sick tomorrow."

"Why wait until tomorrow when I can send out a mass e-mail tonight?" Pepper's voice sounds positively whimsical.

"Because while it's reasonable that I may catch Aaron's virus, I'd need to be around him a few more hours before I'd start showing symptoms."

"Of course, Mr. Stark. You're absolutely right. Why ask for a day you already need off when you can actually get sick and be miserable instead?"

"You're humoring me," Tony accuses lightly as he tightens his hold around her.

"Mmm-hmm..." she replies. "Though it does work out rather nicely for me too."

Tony sighs again, though this time it's in contentment. "So does this mean we can put off our prenuptial-negotiations, at least for tonight? 'Cause I don't know about you, but lying around like a sloth and watching movies sounds a hell of a lot more appealing."

"That almost sounds like a plea for mercy." Pepper's voice is amused. "But I suppose it won't be too hard to leave a message for Gary while I'm sending that e-mail." She's silent for a few seconds before adding, "If you're going to be home tomorrow, I've narrowed down the field for your personal assistant to three candidates, and I'd like you to meet them so you can make a choice."

He groans. "Pepper, doesn't actually working defeat the purpose of a sick day?"

"You're telling me it'll take more than five minutes to decide if someone will suit or not? You hired me after knowing me for thirty seconds."

"Yes well, Pep we had a very..._distinctive_ first meeting."

That's one way to put it. She still finds herself surprised that he hadn't taken her for a lunatic. Though, knowing the way his mind worked like she did, that was probably half the reason he hired her on the spot.

"We need to get this settled soon," she murmurs, allowing that it probably won't happen tomorrow.

"If it'll really take a half hour or less it's fine, I just...." He shrugs, "I guess I'm more in need of some down time then I was letting myself admit."

Well, now _that_ was what she wanted more than his choosing an assistant...though the assistant did rank second on her list. It'd be nice to have someone to share his workload with.

"I'll schedule them for mid-afternoon, if that's okay. Hopefully Aaron will be napping by then, and we'll still be able to sleep in the morning and take our time during the day." When Tony sighs again she tugs gently on his hair. "Hour and a half, tops," she promises. "A half hour for each of them is plenty for initial interview, if you don't end up hiring someone right off the bat."

Tony nods again, this time yawning deeply, and when Pepper looks up at his face it's to see his eyes sliding shut.

She smiles softly and lets her own eyes rest. "I'll remind you later," she murmurs as she pulls him a little closer and dozes off.


	3. Chapter 3

It's earlier than Tony had anticipated being up. About four or five hours earlier to be exact, but Aaron had been fussy all night, and Pepper had taken the last watch, so now it was his turn. Of course, if Aaron followed the pattern he'd set in the last few weeks, then he was going to finally go to sleep in an hour...just in time for the sun to rise and normally, for his parents to start getting ready for the day.

As they now how the day off - except for those meetings Pepper had beguiled him into - Tony takes his fussy son down to the basement. Now is as good a time as any to attempt getting a hold of Mick. There's some questions he needs answered without Pepper finding out. Her confessions of the day before had hinted at things he'd done his best not to think about, but they'd also torn away any excuse he'd had for wearing blinders. He needs advice. About whether or not he's crazy…about what his options might be if he's not.

'This is only an attempt,' Tony has to remind himself as punches in the code for the workshop. In Savannah Mick had been a bit of a night owl, but he figures it can't hurt to check.

He sits down in his desk chair and logs into his email and instant messenger, relieved to see Mick's icon immediately pop up online.

Tag: HotSuperSecretSpy. Status: 'What on earth convinced me it was a good idea to have that sixth pork burrito last night?'

It's a little bit more information than's strictly necessary, and it makes Tony hesitate for moment before he starts to wonder if this is just his brother-in-law's sense of humor cropping up.

Shifting Aaron into one arm with the infant held securely against his chest, Tony opens up a window and types, "If I'm not interrupting anything important, do you have a couple of minutes to talk?" There's a pause of less than fifteen seconds before he gets a reply.

"God yes, I've been contemplating my navel the last three hours, so what's up?"

Tony hits the voice conference button, waits to get confirmation from Mick's end, then settles into his chair more comfortably. "Do I detect a hint of boredom in your voice, Andrews?"

"Forget a hint. This place is dead as a doornail this weekend. Even the crabs are marching back toward the ocean in what I assume is the intent of relief through suicide."

"Vacation not agreeing with you then?" Tony yawns and rubs his face with one hand. "I'd be glad to switch places with you."

"I said a slow weekend, Stark, not vacation. There's a series of festivals starting up soon, and the tours have been awesome. Not that you, Ginny and the monkey aren't welcome to fly down and visit for a week or two if you like."

"I wish we could," Tony says with true regret. This nine to five kind of workday had cramped his style _before _he'd also had a family to make time for. Not that he's going to say anything about the hours he's been working. If Pepper hasn't mentioned it yet in her frequent e-mails to her brother, then he's not going to jump into that fire. "You could ask Amelia to speed up her timetable."

"We'll see," is Mick's reaction after a moment of silence. "So...is this early morning for you, Stark, or did you just not go to bed again?" he asks after another moment or so. Tony gets the distinct feeling he's deliberately changing the subject.

"I've been in and out of bed several times already," he says, playing along for now. Besides, it's Pepper's place to nag on the girlfriend front. "Aaron's got a cold and is sleeping like crap at night."

Mick makes a sympathetic noise. "Try filling up one of the bathrooms with steam. It always helped knock me out when I had croup at that age."

"Not a bad idea," Tony acknowledges after a moment. "Pepper and I already talked about getting a nursery humidifier. In truth though," he pauses. "That's not really why I called."

"Yeah, didn't think it was. Or I hoped it wasn't. That was about the extent of my baby advice." Tony can hear the sound of a chair scraping back against a wood floor and footsteps. "What's up with Ginny?" Mick's voice is dimmer, as if he's moved to get something across the room.

"Why do you automatically think this has anything to do with your sister?"

"We've confirmed that it's nothing to do with Aaron, and if it had something to do with you, you'd be talking to Gin." The sound of footsteps gets louder. The chair scrapes again. It sounds like a bottle cap comes to a spinning stop on a table.

"I guess I could just use an ear to help me...process...through one of our recent conversations."

"Start talking. It's just me and the crabs...you know what I mean."

A grin flits across Tony's face, but it doesn't stay. Instead he shifts Aaron again and grabs a tissue to wipe the boy's nose. The move is fast - Pepper had made him practice at being ruthless about it - but still produces a few squalls from Aaron.

Those squalls in turn, set into motion something Tony had never actually programmed his 'bots to learn. But like a twitchy finger on the release of a fire extinguisher, Dummy comes rolling over, picks up a pacifier from Tony's desk and dangles it in front of Aaron's face though the crocodile tears in the boy's eyes keep him from noticing.

Tony sighs as he reaches for the plug and persuades Aaron to take it. He's thinking about learned behavioral patterns as he starts swiveling his chair back and forth to help calm his child, when other learned behaviors creep back into the center of his thoughts. There's so much he can say to Mick, some of it too personally revealing to be comfortable, some of it so integral to Pepper the woman that he doesn't know how to say it to her brother. Finally he simply says, "She's scaring me."

"In what aspect exactly?"

Mick doesn't sound totally surprised – or even bored, considering the long pause that had led up to the answer - which shores up Tony's failing courage. "We talked a bit about her...history. In dating I mean."

"Mmm...you mean her lack of serious relationships before you?" There's a guarded tone in Mick's voice, but still no surprise.

"That I more or less knew about. My past treatment of her as my employee –" and her acceptance of it "- is more than any boyfriend would have been willing to tolerate." Where Pepper had been concerned, he'd quickly set up a monopoly.

"I'm…worried…about her penchant for one night stands apparently aided and abetted by wine to help her 'relax'." Tony winces even as the words leave his mouth. That hadn't been the most delicate way to broach the topic. But then he needs Mick's advice, so pulling any punches seemed counter productive.

"I was wondering if and when I'd get a call from you about that." Again, the strongest emotion that Tony can discern in Mick's voice is resignation…or at least something very much like it. Considering the brother and sister in question, Tony doubts that Mick is quietly accepting of any of this. He's probably just tired of beating his head against this particular wall when it comes to Pepper. "I assume she did her best to make it sound like a harmless quirk, and that you're experienced enough to not have fallen for it."

"Would I be talking to you about it if I had?" Tony asks. This is hardly a conversation he'd be having with Mick unless he had any other choice. "I'm not happy about it. At all. Which she knows and probably even accepts, for all that she thinks I'm being hypocritical. But the way she raised the subject…" There's a little mouth working on the cotton of his collar; Tony closes his eyes as he holds his son a little closer. "The last time she was pushed too far beyond her boundaries, she ran away, Mick. She ran away without telling me what was wrong or where she was going. And I can't allow her to make _me_ the reason she feels the need to run. Even if her arguments sounded logical, I can't risk her wellbeing."

There's a long silence on the other end of the connection. It'd been a lot to pour out at once, and it hadn't been terrible cogent, so Tony's not surprised that Mick needs a moment to process. But what Mick says next _is_ surprising.

"Are you sure her wellbeing isn't already at risk?"

Tony's brow snaps down, causing deep furrows to appear in his forehead. "I'm not sure I like that statement. What exactly are you implying?"

"God. You're going to make me draw you a picture, aren't you?" Now Mick _does_ sound resigned. "Fine. Let's pretend for my sake that we're not talking about my sister, in which case, protecting her from herself might actually be hurting her more than just…doing things her way. I'm not saying that I want you to deliberately get her drunk and take advantage of her. If you did that, I would have to take time out of my vacation to come pound on you."

"Oh, anything but that," Tony mutters under his breath.

"Suck it, Stark. Stop second guessing me for a few minutes, and put yourself in her shoes. For the first time in her life, Ginny is in love _and_ physically attracted to someone. That on it's own isn't a big deal. That on it's own she is totally capable of handling, and it sounds as if she's trying to. But she's got to be freaked out. She's revealed a lot of weaknesses to you, Stark, and it hasn't be easy for her. For years she has respected the hell out of you and prided herself on the fact that you can rely on her for anything. _Years_. Do you get that? And you said it yourself that the last time she pushed herself too far, she freaked out in a big way. Do you think she wants to put you in the position of being the catalyst for another panic attack anymore than you want to be the reason for one? Everything she knows about sex has put her at odds from acting the way she wants to with you. And if I know my sister, she's viewing that not only as a personal failure, but as a disservice to you."

Tony's speechless. "But why…I love her just the way –"

"I've seen the way you look at her, Stark. You might be thinking in terms of 'when,' but right now Pepper is dealing with 'able.'"

Tony sighs. "Mick, there's got to be a better option here than booze."

"Technically? Yes. Of course there is..."

Tony waits...and waits a little more... "Were you going to clue me in, or is this something I'm going to have to try to work out for myself before coming back for a hint?"

Mick sighs again, "The real question right now, Stark, is if she's overloaded by the changes in her life at present, or if she's strong enough to face the possible trauma of everything that's behind this."

"I suppose that depends on what's behind it." Tony sighs and slouches in his seat as he cranes his neck to check on Aaron. Big blue eyes blink at him slowly. Aaron's eyes have been darkening over the last couple of weeks. Pepper thinks they might become hazel in time. Something about Mick having the same eyes.

"Professionally speaking, what's behind it is probable early childhood sexual abuse." The utter lack of emotion in Mick's voice as he says it tells Tony how hard the words are for him personally.

"That's exactly what I've been trying not to tell myself," Tony says hoarsely, still captivated by his son. By the innocence of his son. "That first time she told me about her mom, when we were in Georgia... She mentioned that she had learned to lock her bedroom door at night."

"I think I've known and not wanted to since the summer I turned thirteen. My parents used to...talk occasionally. I was a shrimpboat - small enough that it was easy not to see me. And once I was in graduate school, it was hard not to recognize my sister in the pages of my textbooks."

Okay, textbooks were good. Textbooks are great. Textbooks defined a problem and then described the steps of possible solutions.

"I just…I need to know what to do, Mick. I need to know how I can help to fix this."

"Well, talking to your wife instead of your brother-in-law would be a good start." Mick's voice is dry. "But since that's also just a start, I'm going to give you some homework. The first term I want you to look up is 'desensitization'…"

* * *

Pepper is stirring cream – or something non-fat and dairy free that's like cream – into her coffee when Tony finally stumbles into the kitchen. After finishing up with Mick and finally getting Aaron settled, he'd gone back to bed. He remembers curling up into her back, pulling her close as he tried to go back to sleep…and not too much after that.

The look on Pepper's face, the tight smile instead of the warm one he usually gets in the morning, puts him immediately on guard.

"What's wrong?" He wonders if she's already gone too far too fast and it's starting to catch up with her.

She relaxes – as if his cluelessness wipes away whatever she'd been thinking when she'd first seen him. The motion of her hand becomes more graceful as she sets the spoon aside in the sink. "Did you have a good talk with Mick this morning?"

Tony hesitates briefly, caught in the act of pouring his own cup of coffee. "Uhh…" Her tone is…off. Just a little. He'd can't tell if she's amused by the prospect of his early morning conversation or anxious because she suspects what the topic might have been.

Or maybe it's much worse, and she'd overheard part of the discussion. This isn't the first time it's occurred to Tony that Pepper might not appreciate his desire to "help." She can be too independent sometimes.

Pepper crosses to the kitchen table where the morning newspaper sits, unrolled and face up. "I woke up and you were gone. I asked Jarvis about it, wanted to know if Aaron was worse or something. He just said that you were engaged in conversation with my brother."

"Ah." Tony finishes his task, reaches for the sugar bowl. So she hadn't overheard anything. "I um…" But does that matter? There's really no use in dissembling. Honesty's the best policy and all that. "I fix things, Pepper. It's what I do." She looks confused when he turns away from the counter and faces her. "I needed to talk to someone who could help me process and figure out what I should be doing."

Comprehension slowly changes her. She holds her coffee mug so that it covers part of her lower face; her free arm wraps around her ribcage. Her feet rearrange into the "shy little girl" pose.

"Oh."

Tony huffs a sigh at his own communication related shortcomings before he sets his mug down. He takes hers away as well, setting it on the table before settling his hands on her shoulders. "I love you." Her shoulders shrug beneath his hands, as if this is accepted as a given, which isn't actually the reaction he was going for. Of course, if she'd met his eyes he would have believed her. Would have believed that she did accept it. "Don't shrug me off, Pepper. That's not - When I said I wanted to know how to fix this, it wasn't to imply that you're in any way malfunctioning."

"I am –"

"No. You're behaving the way you're programmed. Programming dictates behavior, but programming can be changed. I just don't know the code yet –"

Pepper's cheeks are flushed and her eyes keep meeting his and darting away. She's uncomfortable, but she's not trying to move away, so he stays put. "You could have asked me before running to Mick."

"Which is actually what he said. So here I am. Let's talk."

"I don't think this is a good time –"

"Aaron's asleep. Finally. Still. Whatever." He rubs her shoulders and waits for her to look up at him. "Why not?"

"I'm not ready." He's not sure they're even talking about the same thing anymore. These rapid fire exchanges are always impressive when he thinks about them later, but usually confusing right in the middle.

"That's not what I wanted to know," he responds, on the off chance they're both talking about whatever it is that's programmed her approach to intimacy.

"What is?" She guarded, cautious, as if she's having to trust him against her better judgment. He can understand. This isn't exactly what he would have chosen for early morning banter either. But she's clearly been waiting for the sword to fall, so waiting will make things worse.

"Why did you really leave LA?"


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: **I meant to update earlier, but I lost track of time. I'm on my second week of recovering (quickly and well) from surgery. I'm itching to go back to work, but maybe in the meantime I can get another chapter of a fic written, or get together with 4persephone and get a chapter of one of our fics (which would include this) written.

In the meantime, enjoy this. :)

* * *

They're on the east balcony, mugs of coffee steaming between cupped hands, a tray of blueberry muffins and a carafe of refill java sitting on the wide, low table. Pepper's contemplating, Tony's waiting, and Jarvis is on baby monitor duty.

Tony figures this is a good place to start. It's the most recent upset for _them_. Not for her… Well, not only for her. It's a shared trauma, even if it is from different perspectives. It's a stepping stone down the path. Aaron's biological father doesn't even need to factor into things if Pepper doesn't want it to. All he wants to know about is what had driven her that night in December when she'd left him.

Mick had mentioned something about a panic attack, and Pepper not wanting him to know about it. Well, that's just not going to cut it.

"I think I could tolerate an open marriage."

Tony nearly chokes on his coffee. Talk about non-sequiturs. As well as out and out lies.

He takes a few deep breaths to ensure he's calm when he answers. Takes a cautious sip of his coffee. When he replies, he doesn't look her way, because if he does he's going to demand to know how she became so stupid overnight. Open marriages…really…

"Well, I know I can't. So don't even finish whatever insane offer you were going to make."

"You like sex." Pepper points this out baldly, calmly. Like she would point out that he likes Brioni silk ties or Glenfiddich scotch…preferably something that's been in a barrel since the Depression era.

"I like you more. This topic is off limits, Potts."

She shifts. He glances at her. Pepper's face is disgruntled. It would make him laugh if he weren't offended just by the idea. And it is offense at the idea, not at her.

"I think I've gotten a little bit of insight into your frame of mind when you left me." It's clear that if he's going to get any answers, he's going to have to ask specific questions. "But I want to hear from you why leaving as dramatically as you did seemed to be your only option. Why did you leave with only a note?"

"I don't want alimony in the event of a divorce." Pepper's tone is fierce, and once again Tony is thrown. He takes the time to think before answering, because clearly Pepper is operating under the impression that they're bartering for information.

"And I would be willing to cut the amount in the post-nup in half." If this is what it takes to get her to start opening up, then he's willing to negotiate. Besides, even cut in half, the monthly allotment for alimony he's agreeing to is still three times what she made as his PA…in a year. Right now he just wants to get her talking, wants to get her to lower her defenses. The way he sees it, the more comfortable she gets with letting him in on her past, the more unlikely their need for any sort of divorce settlement will be.

Pepper doesn't look happy at the offer. "I don't want –"

Tony holds up a hand, stopping her before she can repeat herself. "You're welcome to change my mind. Later. And I will listen to every single word of whatever argument you have. I promise."

Her eyes narrow a little. "I also want to know more about what you were talking to Mick about."

It's as if she's testing him, seeing how far he's willing to bend, what he's willing to offer. As if that hadn't been spelled out in Gary Larson's office yesterday.

He's willing to give her everything.

"I will tell you a story as soon as you finish telling me one." She studies him, judging the validity of his offer. It makes him hurt a little, the intensity of her gaze. "Hey…" His hand finds hers; slides against it palm to palm until their fingers are aligned – hers dwarfed by his of course. "For better or for worse, right Potts? You've been right there to peel my bleeding body out of my armor. Let me learn how to return the favor."

She shudders, and her hand wraps around his tightly. "You are so _stubborn_."

"I don't let go of what I've been given. There's a difference. Tell me about the day you left, Pepper." Pepper shudders, and curls her arm so that her coffee cup is cradled against her chest. Tony knows enough to recognize closed body language when he sees it.

She glances at him, squeezes the hand still folded around hers a little more tightly. "I'd been feeling off for weeks, all right?" she finally murmurs. "I hadn't been sleeping well and at that point I was constantly nauseous and exhausted from trying to hide it. Having you both there at the party was just too much…I was scared that if all three of us ended up in the same room I was going to flip out somewhere that wasn't private."

She pauses, and Tony doesn't prod for more. The way she'd qualified where the flipping out would occur indicated that she had managed to restrict any hysteria to moments when she was alone.

'Of course she would,' he thinks. Especially when he'd been in such a good mood, so optimistic in the weeks leading up to her disappearance. When she'd started spending more and more time at the house despite the light workload that usually preceded the holidays, he'd assumed that she was ready to start edging into something more. He'd had no reason not to be happy.

'Myopic as usual, Stark.'

Tony realizes that Pepper's watching him intently. Maybe she finds his silence unnerving. Maybe she's watching for signs that he's disturbed by what he's hearing. Knowing Pepper like he does, that will be her first cue to clam up. She won't tell him anything she doesn't think he can handle hearing. Which means there's something she has to say that's probably going to piss him off.

Mick had warned him about this, that Pepper might use his reactions to give herself an excuse to stall or even call quits. 'Suck it up and be a man,' he reminds himself. That means no impressive displays of temper. The coffee cup in his hand is suddenly very comforting. It gives him a prop. Taking another deliberate sip allows him time to start building up his calm and collected persona.

"All three of us…?" he asks when Pepper doesn't look away from him.

His personas have never fooled her. Pepper pulls her hands back and drops her eyes, clearly expecting him to react strongly. "Tony, it was the corporate Christmas Gala. Delaney was at the party too."

Tony nods, jaw tightening a little. But that's the visible extent of his reaction. He hadn't meant to bring the man up unless Pepper did, but now the anger rises automatically with this new information. "Delaney was there? Did he…?"

Pepper raises a hand to stop him, her eyes still firmly focused on her lap.

"No, Tony. Nothing he said or did was aggressive or otherwise inappropriate. The truth is he barely even acknowledged me…We'd already met more than a week prior to that to discuss how we intended to handle the unexpected consequences of our having had sex."

She can't quite bring herself to connect the man to Aaron directly.

Tony nods slowly. "So you left because he was there and so was I, but not because of any specific encounter that occurred that evening?"

Pepper shrugs, "As I said, Delaney didn't even appear to see me. He'd found another female who seemed more than eager for his attention…" Which should have been a relief. Except she'd been so on edge that even the sight of the man had made her stomach clench and her palms start to sweat.

'You were still scared to be in the same room with him,' her inner Mick provides gently.

"I think that it was the memory…" she murmurs, almost to herself, as something in her conscious mind finally clicks into place. "With Delaney, I mean…the position he had me in…"

Tony jerks a little. Turns it into a graceless reach for the coffee pot. "The position…?" He repeats her statement numbly.

Pepper feels her gorge rise up a little, but she's already said more than she intended. Again. "I just...the night that he and I…." She shrugs, "Delaney pinned me down on my stomach on the night that I took him home with me."

The face of the man front of her is slowly turning into iron, a mask as unreadable as that of his suit even though he's biting his tongue and his eyes encourage her to finish. She draws in a shaky breath. "I don't like being held down Tony. I never have. I sort of…disassociated…I guess..." She lets the sentence die off. "I doubt he even realized there was an issue."

"He should have," is all Tony has to say to that.

Pepper just shrugs again. It's always been so hard for her to tell what blame should be placed on her and what should be placed on others. "Maybe. Maybe not. Regardless, just seeing him after that was enough to set my teeth on edge." Still was, though for different reasons. She didn't want Delaney anywhere near Aaron.

While Pepper muses, lost in processing her own memories, understanding is beginning to dawn for Tony as well, and he's not particularly pleased with the conclusions he's reaching.

Especially in connection with his earlier discussion with Mick.

'Doesn't like being pinned. Take a guess as to why…and while she my have 'disassociated' at the time, it's pretty clear that before it was over she'd subconsciously tagged Delaney as a physical threat.'

It also explained perfectly why she reacted to his name like one would the name of a physical attacker.

Tony only wishes that he'd been in the same room as the two of them at that party. Even back then he would have seen something in her body language. Pepper had certain tells when she was scared or distressed. He's pretty certain that the encounter would have tripped his warning radar.

He looks away. Yeah, his radar would have been tripped, and the pleasant buzz he'd had going that night – his Christmas present for Pepper had been at the back of his mind all evening – would have gone up in a blaze of protective fury.

"That still doesn't explain your leaving a note on my desk instead of coming to speak with me."

Pepper almost laughs out of discomfort and disbelief. Tony's actually turning the conversation away from any sort of hypothetical confrontation. It leaves her a little more willing to talk. "Between the pregnancy hormones and the out of control gestational diabetes I didn't know I had, my brain was inside a deep fryer at the time." Okay, so this subject matter wasn't actually any lighter than the first. "And…I just couldn't see any other way out, Tony. My feelings about you and I and Delaney were just this tangled mass that I was sure was the culmination of my quickly unraveling life. I didn't want to take you down with me. I know now that the main reason I felt that way was because my body chemistry was so out of whack, but all I knew then was that I was falling apart, and that you would have allowed me to take you with me." She shakes her head softly. "I couldn't do that. I needed something in my world to remain stable. Even if that meant leaving so it would stay that way."

Tony considers this a moment, nodding his head just a little. "I think I understand. At least in part. You didn't want me to realize there was something wrong, so you left. But you simultaneously left a note so…what…? Your sudden disappearance wouldn't unduly alarm me?"

Pepper nods. "Yeah. I knew that if I just disappeared with no explanation at all, that you'd worry." She shakes her head. "More than worry. You'd come looking for me, and I wasn't in a state to let you find me."

Pepper pauses than shakes her head a little. "You read people pretty well, Tony, when you want to. You'd have known something was up and you would have never let the issue go. If you'd backed me into enough of a corner..." She shrugs her shoulders a little. "Well I'm capable of becoming someone I don't like at _all_, when I'm desperate enough," she whispers. "Some of the things I've said to Mick over the years…well, I'm surprised some days that he's still talking to me."

"Speaking of which..." Pepper turns suddenly. Her expression appears truly confidents for the first time since he'd come into the kitchen. "What were you talking to my brother about this morning?"

Tony lifts an eyebrow. "Are you under the impression that you're calling a bluff?"

Pepper just continues to meet his eyes without saying anything.

Tony shakes his head, half amazed at how quickly she goes from uncomfortable to confident. "I was talking to him about you. What else?"

"And what did my brother have to say on that topic?" Pepper's tone is very…bland. As if she already knows what Mick has to say about the subject.

So Tony replies as he would in any uncomfortable situation… "That I'm not allowed to turn you down just because you have a glass of wine with dinner," he says wryly. The joke doesn't go over quite as well as he'd hoped. "Look, Pepper, I'm not going to deny that our talk yesterday scared me a little." He raises a hand before she can say anything. "And before you start feeling guilty, know that this is as much about my hang ups as it is about yours..."

She looks confused by that and he sighs, taking a sip of coffee before continuing on more bluntly. "Look, I spent years getting drunk and sleeping with tipsy women who I cared very little about. I don't like the feeling that I'm mimicking the habit with you."

Pepper flinches almost as if she's been slapped. "So then where does that leave us?" Pepper propels herself to her feet and starts pacing across the balcony. "How the hell are we ever going to make this work, if -"

"Pepper." Tony interrupts with a stern tone. "I have just as much a right to personal limits as you do."

She spins, eyes wide and jaw dropped. He can't tell if she's going to protest or if she's honestly shocked. He knows the words were harsh, but they were probably still necessary to remind her their current troubles involved not just one person with issues, but two. "Look, clearly I've made you uncomfortable in my attempts to not make you uncomfortable. So let's talk. I take it you're not satisfied with my performance to date."

Pepper almost starts in on the "it's not you, it's me," line, taking all the blame for their awkwardness so far. But she stops, and she thinks about her real complaint with him. "There hasn't _been_ any performance to date, that's the problem," she says softly. "You always pull back the moment I have to stop and take a minute to figure out what I'm feeling."

"You shouldn't have to stop –"

"That doesn't change the fact that I do, Tony!" Pepper draws a deep breath and lets it out slowly. "That's why I thought a glass or two of wine might help speed things along. For both of us. It'd help me not…hesitate…or tense up so much, which would hopefully keep you from stopping."

'Oh like hell,' is Tony's gut response, and from the way Pepper rolls her eyes, the internal sentiment is coming through loud and clear. There's probably no need to actually voice it. At least not at the moment. It's more constructive to focus on the issue they're already discussing.

"Pep, I've always pulled back because I've been reading your tensesness as the precursor to panic. This is the first time you've actually told me that tensing means 'slow down, please, and give me a minute to process' instead of it just being nonverbal cue to back off. Our problem hasn't been just physical, it's been about communication."

That reminder is enough to get Pepper to blink at him. Tony shrugs, "Now that I do know what you need me to do when you tense up, we can work on that. I can't read your mind though. We both need to be better about saying what we're thinking or what we need."

Pepper nods, a little, feels a little of her irritation drain away, because the truth is he has a point. "You're right and I'm sorry if I snapped. I shouldn't have interrupted before you'd had the chance to finish speaking. I'm just not used to... talking about this subject with anyone..."

"We'll both have to learn then. On the bright side I'm so used to you telling me what it is I'm supposed to be doing most of the time anyway that this whole situation feels almost normal." He invites her to share the humor of this with him with a well placed eyebrow. She just rolls her eyes again, which makes him think that she _does_ see the humor but is disciplined enough not to let it show.

"So do you have any more questions," she asks after moment, "Or can we pause the rest of this discussion until we both get something to eat?"

"If I tell you that we can do whatever you want, are you going to yell at me?" Tony teases gently. He sets down his cup of coffee and rises to join her over by the railing. "Food's a good idea for both of us, and if muffins aren't enough for you this morning, I could even be persuaded to cook," he murmurs as he rests his hands on her terrycloth covered hips.

The look on Pepper's face is half wary, probably because she knows exactly what he's up to. "You can cook?" The tone in her voice is the one she always uses when she knows she's being sweet talked.

"Well, I'm not your brother..." The half-seductive tone in his voice disappears in favor of bruised dignity. "I know I've been busy lately, but I don't think I've forgotten how to cook two eggs over easy with two slices of that turkey fake-bacon you liked so much back right after you first had Aaron." He waits to see if she's going to sweet talk him back herself…or act on the cautious passion he can see blooming in the back of her eyes as the heat of his hands starts to register through her robe.

"I do like your bacon," she acknowledges softly, before leaning up on her tiptoes to kiss first his forehead, then his cheek. Then she murmurs a little before her tilting her neck to brush his lips with hers gently.

Tony responds in kind, keeping the kiss soft and sweet while he slowly slides his arms around her waist, pulling her closer. By the time they're pressed chest to chest, Pepper's resting her forehead against his cheek; her breath is hot and fast against his skin. He turns his head to press a gentle kiss to her forehead before squeezing her tightly for good measure, then scooping her up in his arms. She hollers at first and clutches at his shoulders as she's surprised by the quick motion. "Tony!"

"Breakfast," he replies reasonably. "Kitchen's in the house, Pep."

"I can walk, Tony."

"And I can carry you. What's your point?" His face is suspiciously bland. Pepper kicks her feet a few times, but he makes no motion to put her down. She sighs in surrender and lets him do what he wants.

Besides…she'd never admit it, but it's nice. It's safe. It's a comfort after a conversation that'd left her the tiniest bit rattled. They're dancing so close the edge of things she doesn't want to have to tell him. She suspects that the way he's keeping her close is a sign that he isn't any more eager to hear the facts of the matter than she is to tell him. And honestly? That makes it easier to contemplate telling him everything.

'Just as long as it isn't today,' she tells herself as Tony sets her down and gets to work on her breakfast. She thinks today is going to be a good day.


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N:** Well, 4persephone managed to update her story "Negotiations," so I figured it was time to get around to getting this updated too! It's always good to have a writing partner to keep you on track, for all that she claims she's just along for the ride on this one. ;)

As always, feedback is greatly appreciated.

* * *

Pepper does her best to hustle Tony up to the front door of the sprawling beachside home in Manhattan Beach. They'd left late, not because she'd needed more time to get ready, or because they'd lost Aaron's diaper bag or something, but because Tony had decided at the last minute that they'd needed to bring something with them.

"How about a Jell-O mold," he'd suggested, much to Pepper's amazement.

"What?"

He'd looked at her in surprise. Clearly he was serious about this. "We're a boring married couple now, Pepper. Aren't Jell-O molds what boring married couples take to dinner parties?"

She hadn't even known where to begin with that statement, except to tell him that if he ever referred to them in that way again before their 20th anniversary, she was going to have to hurt him. And then she'd told him to run down the wine cellar and pick something rare enough to be impressive if he really needed to bring something with them to dinner with the Walsh's. Which had taken another good fifteen minutes. Even Tony's Jackson Pollock version of driving – which had become much more sedate since they'd had to buy something with a backseat to put the necessary car seat in – hadn't been enough to get them to dinner on time.

'At least it's just us,' Pepper reassures herself as they make it to the front stoop. The door opens before she can knock on it, and then Jack Walsh is pulling her over the threshold with a wide smile and a firm, friendly handshake.

"Ah good, you're just in time...we're running a little late. I'm just not as fast as Hana is when it comes to prepwork in the kitchen." He's dressed nicely but definitely more casual than he'd normally be at the office. Nice trousers and shirt are matched, oddly enough, with only a pair of clean black socks, and his sleeves are rolled up to the elbows. He reaches to shake Tony's hands as well as he leads them through the front entry. "Now first things first: are either of you allergic to shellfish?"

Tony blinks at the question for a moment, then glances at Pepper before shaking his head. "I know Pepper and I aren't – Pep, is there any risk with you having it while feeding Aaron?"

Pepper blinks as well, than shakes her head a little. "I doubt it...there's no allergy anywhere in my family...though if it's possible I would ask you go light on the garlic and onion. The last bowl of French Onion I had left him screaming half the night."

"I think Hana's been careful about that. You learn a few things about babies after having a couple of your own." Jack just looks amused. "Well, take off your shoes," he nods towards a decorative wicker basket off to the side. "They can go there. And feel free to help yourself to a pair of slippers if your feet are chilly. May I?" He gestures towards a quiet Aaron as Pepper tries to kick off her heels. They're a little tight still.

"You have a beautiful house," Pepper tells him honestly as she carefully hands Aaron over so she and Tony can comply. The mansion they're in is nothing like she'd imagined it would be, and yet it's amazing and calming all at once. A blend of earthen colors and gently flowing lines.

Jack smiles. "Hana's influence more than mine. Not that I'm complaining; I swear my blood pressure drops twenty points every time that I walk through the door. We don't get back to Pusan as much in the last couple years as we used to, and for her, I guess this is the next best thing..."

"Pusan? Your wife is from Korea?" Pepper asks the question even as she examines the slippers more carefully. If she's not mistaken, this pair is hand embroidered in silk.

She totally needs a pair of these for herself.

Jack nods. "Yes. We met when I was still back in the Air Force."

"He says that as if he ever actually left."

The comment comes from behind Jack and causes a wide smile to spread across face. "Hun, come meet Tony and Pepper."

"Actually, I think we've met once." Tony steps forward, offering his hand. "Some boring dinner party a few years ago?"

Hana snorts. "Frankly, I'm surprised you remember that much." Tony just shrugs, well aware that in the absence of anything else to amuse him, the bottom of a highball glass would have been his standby. "Muriel West was hosting. It was a 'summer in Paris' theme, which might have been pleasant if she'd played French music or served a single dish that was actually French." Her tone is dry, as if she's commenting on the performance of her favorite football team the day after they made a mistake that cost them the game.

Tony winces. "It sounds worse when you recount it, which is probably why you haven't been introduced to my wife yet. Pepper was probably trying to find some kind of emergency for me to take care of." Tony places his hand on the small of Pepper's back so that she can be introduced.

Pepper holds out her right hand and says very sincerely, "You have to tell me where you found these slippers because I need a pair immediately." The smile on her face is genuine.

Hana beams. "Then keep the pair you are wearing, in exchange for letting me borrow your little one for a few minutes tonight. They take only a couple of hours to make...it's a fair trade for snuggling. My grandchildren now are all 'too big'." She puts the words in quotes with a look of amused inevitability.

"You made these yourself?" Pepper's even more impressed now. She accepts Aaron back from Jack now that she has the slippers on, and looking down at her son she remembers, "I kept meaning to send a thank you note for the robe and blanket you sent us in Savannah. The robe's been getting good use, but I wasn't sure how careful I needed to be about cleaning the quilt, so it's on the back of the rocker in the nursery still. I'd hate to hurt it by putting it in the washing machine."

"Sewing is a pastime of mine...and the quilt can be washed normally without issue in warm water, and then tumbled dry or hung on a line. Just beware a heated dryer may make it fade or shrink..."

Jack chuckles, "And if it does ever fall into one mishap or another, be sure to let me know. Hana has enough fabric stored to make a blanket for every child in the world, given enough time." His wife rolls her eyes, but blushes in acknowledgement of the fact, and is rewarded by a kiss on the cheek.

"You're very talented," Tony says with all honesty. "I have a heirloom quilt myself packed up somewhere...a gift from my aunt to my mother. These days the ability to make something beautiful by hand is a dying art..." He shrugs, "I guess maybe consumerism has the habit of making all of us a little lazy." Hana blushes brighter, but nods her head again.

Jack smiles softly, wrapping one arm around his wife's waist. "Hana actually worked in a drycleaners and tailor's shop when I met her...was in charge of keeping my Dress Whites up to code, which in those days was no small task, believe me."

Hana shakes her head. "Red wine. Steak sauce. Spaghetti." She seems to realize that her guests are still standing. Patting Jack's arm fondly, she gestures towards the living room. "Please, the shrimp needs another ten minutes or so before we're ready to eat."

The living room – like the foyer – is open and flowing. The wooden floors look like they might be bamboo, and small wall fountains to either side of the unlit fireplace provide soothing white noise. There's a tray on the coffee table equipped with the usual paraphernalia along with two teapots – both almost perfectly round and four tea cups set dome-up on their saucers. Pepper's surprised by the modernistic style, but it doesn't seem out of place at all.

"I made decaffeinated tea for Pepper and myself," Hana says as they all take seats. "However, I know Jack prefers something with a little more kick to it, and I wasn't sure if you wouldn't prefer the same, Tony." The older woman deftly pours two cups from one of the pots, allowing Pepper to add her own cream.

"I'll take either. I don't have much experience with eastern style teas..." Tony admits bluntly. "Though I do admit I like chocolate Chai."

"From Starbucks?" Hana suppresses a grin. "I'm not sure I would call the water most coffee chains around here sell 'Chai.'"

"I was introduced to the stuff I had in Afghanistan," Tony replies quietly

The silence doesn't quite have time to become awkward, though it is strained. Hana glances at Tony as she hands him his cup of tea. "Then, Mr. Stark, you know exactly what I mean about the American version of Chai." While her tone is light, her eyes are calm and understanding. It's clear that she accepts his statement at face value without any of the baggage that the information could have carried.

He smiles a little. "The American French Vanilla stuff is disgusting."

Pepper laughs softly, relieved that Hana's conversational touch is so deft. "You say that about ANYTHING with French vanilla."

"Yes well, we ought to know better than to let the French mess with anything!"

"Francophile," Pepper murmurs. "Hana? To save us both time, I should ask now where you buy your Chai."

"There's a little tea house in Chinatown that imports their Chai from a family that's owned and run a tea plantation for generations. I believe at last count they had 17 varieties."

"I'll have to take my brother Mick - he's a chef - to the area and check it out. He's going to have to scope out new suppliers here in L.A."

"That will be nice for you, to have family nearby." Jack sighs in contentment after a sip of tea. "He's going to open up a restaurant?"

"He was talking about it when we were in Savannah. I told him I'd be his silent partner in exchange for a share of the profits once he's up and running. What I didn't mention was that I'd probably use those profits to set up a scholarship for inner city kids who can't afford to attend culinary school. It's something he'd approve of though." Pepper feels her lips quirk. "After all, it seems unlikely that I'll need to continue saving for my retirement now."

"Does that mean you two have finally reached a settlement?"

Pepper rolls her eyes while Tony snorts. "I wish. Pepper's being unreasonable about the entire thing. From what I've heard, most women are usually happy when you hand them the moon on a string."

"You aren't trying to hand me the moon. You're trying to hand over the entire solar system."

"I for one fail to see the problem in a husband recognizing his wife's true worth," Hana says after looking at her husband's amused face and the slight cast of exasperation over Tony and Pepper's. "Do you mind…?"

Pepper checks Aaron quickly, noticing that he's woken up from his nap and is now looking around with alert eyes. She carefully passes him to Hana, along with the advice of, "He likes to face outwards so he can look around."

Hana nods, taking the baby and shifting him to sit as she's been instructed. "A sign of a bright mind - to want to take in everything."

"It also protects you from being grabbed by the nose," Tony informs her, lips curling up wryly.

Jack snorts aloud. "Our eldest boy did that as well. He also could projectile spit his pacifier to an unbelievable distance..."

Aaron does look around, his eyes focusing here and there around the room before coming to rest on his parents. Their position seems to puzzle him, because he cranes his neck around to see who's holding him. Hana's prepared, intercepting his hand before he can grab on to her large earrings.

"Ask your own parents for heirlooms to play with, little one." Hana accepts the toy Pepper hands over - a ring of brightly colored rubber keys - which Aaron accepts. He waves them around with both hands, aaah-ing in time to the way he bounces a little in Hana's lap.

Tony and Jack both chuckle, before Jack speaks up again. "He looks more like you every day, Pepper."

Pepper shrugs, "Maybe. Though I wish I had a picture of my brother with me. You could probably confuse their baby pictures."

"Is this the same you mentioned before or do you have more than one?"

"No...it's just Mick and I." She shrugs and her lips curve upward a little. "Frankly, I don't think the universe could handle more than that."

"That's the truth," Tony mutters. "There's only so much herding molecules can take before they explode."

Pepper turns in her seat to look at Tony somewhat sternly. "Herding? Are you comparing me to a molecular sheep dog, Stark?"

"No comment." Tony raises his cup of chai to his mouth to forestall any other attempts to make him incriminate himself.

"So where were the two of you born, if I can ask?" Hana asks, curious. "Here in California or elsewhere?"

"Sicily."

"Seattle." Pepper and Tony answer in perfect synchronization.

Tony blinks. "Really? I thought you were born in Savannah."

Pepper shifts in her seat as if she's uneasy, but replies in an even tone, "No, that was Mick. I only came to live in the Southeast after my mom died - I was around nine at the time. Which is why Mick has the superior southern drawl. Or so he claims anyway."

She grins. "Of course, that's simply a matter of opinion," she goes on in a voice as thick and smooth as molasses. "I've just never found it as useful in my line of work as he does in his."

Tony's mouth drops open in shock, then he closes it quickly and tries to summon up some spit so he can swallow. Pepper's voice with that drawl is pure seduction - silk sheets, humid air, cicadas outside the window, and the scent of magnolias....

Hana and Jack trade a smile, and the former rises to her feet with Aaron firmly in her grasp. "Time to check the shrimp. You coming with me?"

"Definitely," Jack agrees. "You two finish up your drinks and meet us down in the kitchen." The older couple departs, leaving Tony and Pepper still sitting on the couch. Pepper's now smiling a little smugly at the half shellshocked vibes coming from her husband.

"Hot damn," he murmurs to himself before collecting himself enough to raise one eyebrow and ask, "And how is it I didn't know before now that you had that accent?"

"Because I was trying to stay off your radar?" Pepper bluntly informs him.

Tony nods again before whistling through his teeth. "Well now that you're not I repeat for the record: hot damn."

Pepper's lips quirk, even as her eyes grow more bemused than amused. "It's just an accent, Tony."

Tony nods, then looks a little sheepish. "Sorry -you just managed to stumble across one of my personal...things?"

"Things." Pepper raises an eyebrow at his choice of words.

"You know…'_things_.' I'd say kink but it's a little more complex than that to be honest. My first childhood crush may have also spoken in that accent." He shrugs. "It still speaks to the 'compliant pile of mush' section of my brain."

"Compliant? That's new."

Tony's lips quirk. "Well, maybe not compliant. But it definitely wants to make me roll over and beg to have my...belly...rubbed."

Pepper huffs out a laugh at his imagery. "Smooth, Stark."

"Hey, it could be worse. She was ten and I was like seven."

"Puppy love, then."

"Then," he agrees. "Now it's much more like 'Pepper' love, but yeah. Essentially. With the benefit of having a direct path to the switch that will short circuit my brain." Tony stands and offers Pepper a hand. "I think we should rejoin our hosts before they wonder what we're up to, my delicate Southern Belle."

Pepper nods, and allows him to help her to her feet. "So dare I ask what this young lady's name was?"

"Betty Sue." He sighs. "As I said, I was young - so please resist the urge to say anything."

"I wasn't going to say a word," Pepper says airily as she wraps her arm though his.

"Mmm-hmm…" Tony sounds distinctly skeptical.

"So, did you make this Betty Sue an overly extravagant Valentines gift or something at some point?" Her words are teasing.

"No...But I may have ended the relationship unintentionally at Christmas when I tried to give her my favorite socket wrench." Tony takes offense when Pepper splutters. "Hey - I'll have you know at the time there was _no_ greater sign of my affection."

Pepper doesn't say anything, especially not what she's thinking. And what she's thinking is that there's still probably no better sign of his affection. The pieces of jewelry that he'd handed out indiscriminately, the trips around the globe, the extravagant bouquets, even the occasional car... Those were go-to gifts, with no real thought, significance, or sacrifice attached.

A favorite tool on the other hand? That meant something. It would still meaning something.

"Are you being the designated driver tonight or am I?" she asks softly as they walk into the kitchen. Aaron's watching Hana's every move from Jack's arms. As his parents watch, Hana dips the tip of a small spoon into a pan, blows on it for several seconds, and offers it to the baby. Aaron grabs the handle near Hana's hand to hold it while he sucks enthusiastically.

"Ginger pear, little one," Hana tells him. "Sweet and easy on the tummy."

Pepper chuckles. "Looks like someone's getting ready to start trying solid foods…though the name is a little misleading. I've already started comparing types of rice cereals and pureed fruits and veggies." She comes over to tickle Aaron's cheek. "For tonight though, we just have a bottle. Easier to manage."

"Smart woman." Jack agree with a nod. "Though to be fair he's young yet to be particularly picky. Though even _I_ would reject that ground liver and peas stuff they try and sell in a jar..."

Hana sets the spoon down. "Food's ready," she announces. "Jack, do you want to show our guests where the dining room is? I'll just get this into serving dishes."

Pepper accepts her baby back, noticing Tony's already left the kitchen to go get the baby bag without her having to ask. For all his inattention earlier in his life, he really is quite perceptive.

And she really is quite lucky.

* * *

Pepper's content as Tony drives home. The windows are down, allowing in the warm summer evening air; a happy and well-fed baby is in the backseat, sound asleep; a relaxed husband is in the seat next to her, one arm draped lazily over the center consol as he sings softly under his breath with the radio.

She watches his profile as he guides the car through the winding roads at a speed only a little higher than the posted limits. As much as he dodges his son's attempts to grab his nose, Pepper can understand the fascination. Tony had a very fine nose. And brows...though, those were less on account of nature than on account of a pair of tweezers.

"Can I help you?" Tony glances away from the road to meet her eyes briefly.

"Maybe." Pepper slowly turns her gaze towards the window and looks out towards the ocean. Their conversation yesterday morning about boundaries and limits seems to hold a particular meaning now.

"Maybe?"

Pepper shrugs and replies circumspectly, "I was thinking maybe I could be doing the helping..." The poor man has been celibate for over a year now, several of those months with a wife at his side who hadn't really known how to raise the subject after being told the first time she'd offered that he didn't mind waiting for her.

She doubts he'd anticipated just how long he'd have to wait for things to be perfectly two-sided. Pepper wonders if he's ready to accept an imperfectly two-sided arrangement yet. Because, progress was progress, and just becoming more accustomed to his body before she had to fully…submit to it…would probably do a lot to help her nerves.

Not to mention it was unlikely that she'd have a panic attack in the middle of a hand job.

"Dare I ask what you're offering a hand with?"

"Perhaps not while you're driving."

Tony blinks a little at that. "Pep?"

"Just humor me for now. Please?"

"Okay...." Tony looks at her oddly, but then returns his eyes to the road.

"So, do you have anything on your schedule tomorrow I should know about?" she asks in an attempt to change the subject and calm the butterflies starting to dart about in her stomach. "Or might we actually get to sleep in a little with Kara coming tomorrow morning?" Aaron's nanny hadn't objected to a few extra hours over the weekend. Though to be honest Pepper had originally intended to use the time she was there for more post-nup negotiations.

Tony sighs. "My attendance has been requested at several meetings tomorrow, but they're the sort I wouldn't have attended before you left, much less before Afghanistan."

Pepper quirks her head. "And yet you're going to them now?" She contemplates that a moment. "Tony, have you considered that maybe you're having the troubles you are with the Board because you're doing too much of a good thing? Maybe they're taking all this kowtowing as a sign that you're not back to a hundred percent yet. It may be time to start reminding them that on occasion you still have a right to not give a shit..."

"I was hoping you'd say that." Tony throws her a grin.

Pepper snorts. "What can I say, Stark, with present company excluded, we can't have you showing your belly too often."

"Well, as long as present company is excluded..."

Pepper glances away from the window and smiles at Tony. "With or without the accent?"

"The accent's a nice treat..." Tony admits. "But it was never required before now for compliance..."

"Compliance, huh? I suppose that's a better verb than 'herding' at least..."

Tony chuckles softly. "Come on, Pep, be honest here. I'm quite sure there were days in the past you would have _killed_ to have a collar on my neck and a leash in your hand."

"You had your moments," Pepper tactfully admits. "Though if we're really being honest, you were always less a dog-type personality than you were a cat or raccoon..."

"A _raccoon_?" Tony raises an eyebrow at that.

"Smart. Probably too smart. A born problem solver. Attracted to anything shiny, whether you actually need it or not. Happiest and easiest to manage when left in your home habitat."

Tony snorts. "As long as you don't start referring to me as 'Rascal' in public..." He pauses. "Shiny things? Did you have to be _that_ blunt?"

"If the shoe fits…"

"Well, at least you're bringing your addictions into it to," Tony mutters as he takes the turnoff for the road that'll lead to the mansion.

Pepper smiles, but lets the conversation die. When the trait wasn't applied to people, it was mostly harmless. Or at least, he had enough money to render the trait harmless. If he'd had to stick to any kind of budget, he'd be labeled a compulsive shopper or a shopaholic.

"You really think I'm grabby?"

"Do you really think you're not?" Pepper shifts her weight in her seat so she can turn her entire body towards him. "I don't mean anything by it, Tony. But you're incredibly impulsive."

"I can be," he admits. "Though I think in recent months I've been at least scaling back the habit."

"Only because you haven't had the energy to be intrigued by much outside of what's immediately in front of you." Pepper grins in the darkness. "But do I really need to remind you of just how much baby stuff we came back from Savannah with...and who was responsible for most of it?"

"Yes well, it was a good distraction waiting for the meds to kick in every day after I finished cardiac PT."

"Oh, so if you're been the picture of health, you wouldn't have bought a thing." Pepper reaches over and rests her hand on his knee. "I don't want you to think I'm coming down on you over this. Because I'm not. It's actually...cute."

Tony glances down at the hand on his knee, then over to her as he smoothly pulls into the garage and into the newly cleared parking spot next to his sports cars. "Pepper, it doesn't usually help a man's ego to refer to him as a cute ANYTHING."

"Endearing?" Pepper tries.

"I can live with that." Tony turns the car off and presses a quick kiss to her cheek. "I'll get Aaron."


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: **This is an abrupt pickup from the previous chapter. If you want to go back and read the last couple of lines to refresh your memory, that'd be alright since it's been awhile since we updated. However, I trust that no one will be disappointed…and that's what I expect to hear back. :)

* * *

Pepper grabs the diaper bag and follows Tony up the stairs to the living quarters. "Will you put Aaron down? I want to check the network to see if anything urgent has come in while we were gone. If not, I can rearrange your schedule for a late start tomorrow."

"Sounds like a good plan to me." Tony smiles before disappearing into the nursery, which leaves Pepper free to duck into the master bedroom where she promptly stalls out. There's a lot going through her head right now, and very little of it is coherent. However, on the other hand, most of it _is_ generally optimistic.

"Okay," she murmurs to herself under her breath, attempting to prioritize. "Jarvis, how many items on Tony's schedule for tomorrow are level three and above?" She had a seven point scale for the kinds of meetings, appointments, and events that Tony needed to attend during the course of his days. Level seven contained the kinds of meetings Tony had been talking about – things that he could either attend in person, or save time by getting the information by way of typed brief at a later date. Level threes were meetings with the heads of his departments, and levels two and one were with the Board of Directors and an irate Board of Directors respectively.

"Mr. Stark has already attended all of this month's divisional meetings," Jarvis reports as Pepper starts unbuttoning her slacks. She looks down at her feet, debating whether or not to leave her socks on. "There are no other priority meetings until the quarterly Board of Directors meeting at the end of the week."

She'll leave the socks on, Pepper decides. That should indicate a seduction with a limit, right? Because socks weren't really sexy.

"What about items needing the attention of Ironman?" Pepper hangs her sweater in the closet and pulls on one of Tony's t-shirts and darts into the bathroom to scrub her face and her teeth. A fresh face would hopefully indicate this wasn't a practiced attempt, and clean teeth…

Well, to be honest, there'd been a couple of dishes with garlic in them tonight, and she's got just enough nerves on edge to make her a little self-conscious.

"SHIELD has yet to indicate any need of assistance from Mr. Stark."

"And anything that he'd feel he'd need to involve himself in?" Things had been almost unnaturally quiet on the Ironman front since they'd gotten back from Georgia. Fortunately, since Tony hasn't been in any shape to go out, even in the suit. Or especially in the suit. Pepper knows he presses himself farther than he should when he's out there in his armor.

"The data tracking subroutines Mr. Stark installed in my information retrieval system indicates that the current peacekeeping bodies in al flagged areas of interest have their respective situations under control."

Pepper briefly wondered what sort of parameters separated a controlled situation from one needing aid. "Alright. Rearrange Mr. Stark's schedule so that his presence at Stark Industries won't be necessary before 11 am. Route all calls before 10 through the answering service or the main office, depending on which phone list they're on." Jarvis beeps to indicate the settings she's indicated have been put into effect. Outside Pepper can hear Tony moving around in the bedroom, probably taking off his shoes and socks, putting away cufflinks, that sort of thing.

'Okay,' she tells herself as she pauses at the bathroom door, quickly scrubbing her palms on the long hem of the t-shirt. 'I've got a plan. And Tony is just going to have to deal with it if _we're_ going to deal with anything.' Still, she opens the door softly, hoping that the element of surprise might buy her a few more minutes of uncomplaining cooperation before Tony's brain catches up with him and he starts asking questions.

She's got to get his body on her side _first_ if she's going to have any luck at convincing him to change his stance on just how intimate they're going to be.

Luck is with her; Tony's facing away, playing with something on the dresser. Pepper sidles up behind him, noiseless in her stocking feet. When Tony turns around, he starts a little to find her so close, but Pepper doesn't give him a chance to widen the distance. Her mouth finds his and her hands fumble down his arms until she can entwine her fingers with his, ensuring some control over them. He can't push her away now and she thinks that if she can just…if she can be the one eliciting the responses, then she shouldn't freeze up.

Unlike Tony, who _is_ frozen under her kiss. Pepper pauses for a moment too, scared that maybe she's come on _too_ strong. Then his hands tighten around hers, sending a jolt up the base of her neck; then she's kissing him hungrily, pushing up on her toes and pressing him back into the dresser, all while her hands stay fastened around his.

"Pep?" When he finally gets room to breathe, Tony's voice is breathy but cautious.

Her hands tighten on his. "Can I...can I take the lead?" Yes, she'd had some wine. With a full meal. And they had an agreement.

Pepper's heart was racing to begin with, but it begins pounding when Tony doesn't say anything. "You did say you weren't allowed to turn me down because I'd had a glass of wine with dinner. And I..." Explanations are always so hard. "I know almost everything about you, Tony. Except...except this. And so I'm always trying to anticipate, which we both know by now just doesn't get us anywhere. And I thought that if I could learn what you're like, then I could maybe start relaxing enough for us to learn what _we're_ like."

More silence, then his hands tighten around her again. "Pepper…" When he speaks his voice is hungry but also _amused_. "I didn't expect you were going to... Love, I don't have any protection."

It takes her a moment to process his meaning, because that's so not where her mind is right now. "Oh. That's not, I mean, for what I have in mind, protection isn't really necessary." Pepper shifts around on her toes, knowing her face is probably bright red. "Look, I know you're all about share and share alike, but right now I'd really just like to start with share. I don't think I'm up for the 'alike' part yet."

Tony raises a brow as he processes this statement. Then he grins a little. "If this is really what you _want,_ then I suppose I can make the sacrifice." For just a moment she thinks she sees a hint of what might be - relief? - in his eyes.

Pepper can't believe that he's not going to protest this any more than that, but she's not going to look a gift horse in the mouth. 'That must have been some talk he had with Mick,' she decides as she reaches for the buttons on his shirt and quickly undoes them. This at least she has plenty of practice at, considering how many times she's had to pour him into his bed over the course of her career.

Tony's hands come to a rest on her shoulders, rubbing reassuringly as she pulls his shirt tails out of his pants. "That's good," she murmurs, rising up on her toes to kiss him some more.

He nods a little. "One rule from my end?" he murmurs back. "I'm only going to touch where you choose to put my hands."

She nods against his mouth. He really is quite perceptive when he's paying attention. That had been next on her list of things to say. If she can keep from being distracted by trying to second guess what he might attempt, then she can focus fully on what he _is_ doing. And on what she's doing, which at the moment is wrapping her arms around his neck so that she can be a little more on his level as she kisses him with more daring than she's previously used. He moans a little, lips parting without complaint as he returns the kiss with equal measure. Pepper shivers with delight and runs her hands through his hair; there's no reason not to go exploring, after all. The rules they've set down leave her safe.

After a few more moments she starts to shift them away from the dresser in favor of the bigger, more comfortable bed. She has to shrug his hands from his shoulders in order to strip him of his shirt and undershirt, and when their feet tangle as they hit the edge of the bed, she's glad to notice that he's already taken his shoes off. Not that she's quite ready to deal with his pants yet...but it's good future knowledge.

They end up on the bed rather awkwardly, Tony sitting down hard and Pepper climbing onto the bed to kneel at his side, but they manage not to break the kiss. Safe within her boundaries, Pepper finds herself suddenly ravenous for the taste of Tony, for the feel of his pulse racing under his skin, and the sound of his soft groans muffled against her open mouth.

The force of her kiss must be stronger than she realizes, for Tony's arms slide out from where he's supporting his weight with his hands and they both fall with a small thump to the mattress. It sets her giggling.

Tony's not laughing. He apparently is making an attempt to catch his breath. "Wow," he finally murmurs. "That's not the reaction I usually get after promising not to touch a woman."

Pepper just smiles so that her eyes crinkle a little at the corners, then moves her attention to the crook of his neck. Tony tenses as her lips meet his skin, whole body tightening as he bites back a defensive squeak.

"Bad?" She pulls back quickly, waiting for clarification. Knowing how she herself sometimes reacts to the unexpected, she doesn't want to force that on anyone else.

"No...I just might be a teeny-tiny bit ticklish."

Tony watches as Pepper considers. For all her passion, her eyes are very calculating. There's nothing she's doing without consideration, which makes him wonder how long she's been planning this. He plays with the ends of her hair, just watching, trying not to anticipate. A little anticipation is going to get him into trouble if he's not careful. So he enjoys what currently is: Pepper's hand sliding against the pulse in his neck as she delicately gnaws on her bottom lip and squints her eyes in extreme focus.

Then she bends down again, this time nipping at the skin firmly with her teeth; Tony groans. Pepper finds herself intrigued by the sound. She wants to find that threshold between ticklish and pleasurable.

Tony's heavy breathing is the soundtrack to her actions. She plays with the pressure, figuring out what kind of kisses make him shiver and tense, and which make him shiver and stretch out so she can do it some more. His hands playing in her hair are a steadying influence, keeping her braced above him. Her own hands are carrying out strictly assigned tasks; her right hand is braced on the mattress by Tony's ear, keeping her upright. Her left hand has the much more pleasant task of tracing meandering paths along his triceps as she starts to drag her kisses over his clavicle to his throat.

For as long as she's known him, Tony has never been a slouch when it's come to taking care of his physical appearance. Part of it was the man was blessed with one of those metabolisms that just didn't quit and a tendency to move when he was stuck on something. Another fairly large part was due to the fact that he was just vain – there was no two ways around it. After his decision to don the Ironman armor, he'd started bulking up considerably, so much so that she'd had to order him new dress shirts.

Frankly, that new body probably would have overwhelmed her now, Pepper thinks as she lifts her head enough to follow her hand's path with her eyes. Tony's current physique is much closer to the form she's known for years than to the bench-pressing, iron-pumping, Muscle Beach body he'd become in the wake of Afghanistan. Not that he's scrawny by any means, but the neglect he'd shown himself while she was gone had left him at least twenty pounds lighter than he'd been before she'd left. Twenty pounds he didn't outweigh or out-muscle her by. Twenty pounds she didn't need to be intimidated of.

"Pepper?"

"Hm?" She looks up as Tony cups her cheek.

"If you're having second thoughts, we don't have to –"

"Oh. No, that's not…" She trails her hand back and forth up his ribcage until she can gently roll her thumb across one nipple. His entire body tightens at the slight motion, and she swears she can practically hear him swallow hard as she starts circling with one unpainted fingernail. "I want to do this. I'm just glad you're not so…big…anymore. Or rather, right now."

"Big?" he echoes faintly as she brushes her hand over his chest again.

"Muscular," she amends after considering how else he could have taken her words. "I mean, I know Ironman has to be more than the suit, but…I guess I don't feel as…"

"Vulnerable?" he asks softly when she trails off and doesn't continue.

"Yeah," she whispers back before she laughs at herself with a certain measure of derision. "You'll tell me if my baggage is killing the mood, right?"

His hand raises to squeeze her free one for the space of a moment, before letting go again. "Only one thing's going to do that, remember? No tickling."

Her lips quiver a bit, as if uncertain they should smile or frown. She finally lets them curve up into a small smile. "Whatever you say, boss."

Tony leans forward just enough to press a kiss to her forehead; she can feel the way he smiles against her skin. "Boss, huh? When did I earn back THAT title?"

"You say that as if you ever earned it in the first place," she sighs into his ear as she settles into his side. Her legs move a little restlessly before she gives in and just drapes one across the both of his for now. Her fingers are still occupied with exploring his torso, testing the weight of muscle and the strength of bone and the smooth expanse of warm skin.

Tony shudders when she traces a pale scar on the right side of his ribcage, breathing increasing as his pupils dilate. "I like...to think...I managed...at least occasionally." She gets a similar reaction from tracing the skin around the arc ring.

"Occasionally. Even between the women and the tabloid fiascos, you still gave me reasons to be proud of you before Ironman." The scars are the only things that mar his skin. "How is it that out of all the wild things you did while drunk, getting a tattoo was never one of them?"

Tony chuckles. "Latent respect for my mother? She forbid it until my eighteenth birthday...and after that..." He shrugs a little. "She always claimed that that in light of Great Aunt Margie's Dachau number, all other body art was trashy."

"I thought about it a few times when I was in college," Pepper admits softly. "Until I realized it was an act of rebellion without a target. Besides, if I'd gone through with it, I never would have been able to wear that blue dress you like so much." Her fingertips circle around his implant one last time before slowly – hesitantly – blazing a trail down towards his navel.

"That...would have...been a pity." Tony admits in a breathy voice, thumb rhythmically tapping each of the fingers on one hand. He's having more trouble than he'd like with not being able to touch her...and he's afraid she'll take gripping the sheets as a sign of distress rather than as a sign that he doesn't trust himself to keep his hands under control if he touches her.

Pepper's lips quirk. If he thinks that's a pity, then he can't imagine what he'll think when he sees the dress she picked out for the benefit they're supposed to attend on Friday.

Her hand finally reaches its destination; a little stymied and only a little less twitchy than Tony, Pepper allows her palm to rest against his belly as she mentally hikes up her pants. After going this far she can't go back, and she doesn't even really want to. It's just that this is a Big Step - capital letters included.

"Tony?"

"Yeah, Pep?"

She can't quite put what she wants to tell him into words, so instead she leans down and softly kisses him. Tony leans forward just the slightest bit, lips returning the offered dance eagerly. This at least is comfortable AND completely familiar.

She stays there, allowing his passion to soothe her nerves. For him, she's enough. Right now, even though she can't offer him everything, she's still enough.

"Stay put," she breathes out softly when she gently breaks their kiss, though she quickly claims another quick peck to bolster her courage and she keeps her eyes on his heavily lidded ones as she climbs off the bed. Her too-big t-shirt and white cotton socks don't seem to do much to discourage him.

'Best to get it done,' she tells herself as she first pulls off his socks and then reaches for his belt buckle. Focused on her task, she doesn't notice the way Tony's eyes move from her hands to the bottom lip she unconsciously bites as she tries both to get him...well, naked...and to do it without teasing. Clothing removal is just a step, and she lets his pants and boxers drop to floor as she pulls them over his bare feet.

Is it really weird for her to notice that she LIKES the sight of his bare feet?

Pepper practically scrambles back onto the bed, her courage shot for the moment. It's not really Tony's nudity, or his evident arousal that's got her shaken, or even the thought - the determination - that she's going to bring him through to climax. It's the small voice in the back of her head that questions whether Tony's really going to be satisfied with a taste of sexual intimacy when he's used to having exactly what he wants. It's later tonight...or sometime tomorrow morning...whenever he might look at her and sees what she _is_ rather than what for the first time she's willing to become that makes her worried.

"Last chance to take my deal on an open marriage," she says, half to tease, half to make him prove that she's really what he wants.

Tony frowns – his eyebrows come crashing together and he even bares his teeth at her a little – and he growls, "No. Way. In Hell."

His words burrow deeply inside her, setting up camp and making her daring. "Kiss me," she whispers as her hand slowly moves down his hip and along the outside of his thigh.

It takes him less than a second to obey, one hand coming up to gently but firmly wrap around the back of her head as he pulls her down. His lips move under hers with not just talent, but experience, as if he's going to give her something for her troubles come hell or high water. Pepper reciprocates by slowly dragging her hand up the inside of his thigh, feeling the body under her get tighter and tighter with ever inch she ascends, until…

Though he doesn't break the kiss he does jerk a little involuntarily when her hand finally reaches its destination.

"It's okay," he rumbles against her mouth as she freezes a little. "You're perfect, Pepper. You're...yes...just like…" He stops trying to cheerlead and tries to focus on kissing her instead since that's the only thing she's asked him to do for her. But it's been a...VERY...long time, and her hand is very...soft against him. And, well, it's Pepper. This is PEPPER here with him. So he thinks very distantly that perhaps he can be forgiven if he's distracted and that his lips end up on her neck instead as he grits his teeth and tries to hold on through the temptation to wildly let himself go instead of holding on...to see just how much...more...

In the end it's HER soft moan/sigh combo as he pulls her close and presses his face into her shoulder that sets him off. And damn, if it doesn't nail him right in the back of the head as he leverages his body against hers, seeking more of her warmth and skin and scent and sound and -

He realizes as he's panting hard against her neck and shivering with aftershocks that Pepper's entire body is trembling under his. It's enough for him to make an instinctive, uncoordinated attempt to give her space because the last thing he wants to do is to make her feel trapped –

Before he can really do more than lift up a few inches, her hands land in his hair and she presses tightly against him and her lips move hungrily over his so that he has to pull great deep breaths in through his nose, but who is he to argue?

He rolls till she's on top, putting every inch of love he feels into that long, breathless kiss.

"I love you," he manages when they finally come up for air.

Pepper nods, starting to get that. She's going to need to put on something dry to sleep in, but for the moment she takes a moment to cherish the fact that she did THAT to Tony.

She did.

All by herself.

When Tony finally speaks again it's to say, "I need some water. Want me to bring you anything?"

She shakes her head mutely against his chest. As long as he comes back so she can cuddle up to him, she'll be happy...

Tony edges from the bed then, heading out to the kitchen for a drink, then back into the master bath, where the shower comes on.

When he emerges it's in a pair of sleep bottoms, but no shirt or socks.

Pepper's taken the time to change into a set of silk pajamas, something she hasn't previously worked up the courage to wear to bed. All her sleep wear up to this point has been geared towards appearing somewhat asexual...but that's silly now. She's propped up in bed, a TiVo'd episode of Project Runway playing softly across the windows.

"Do you mind?" she asks softly, presumably meaning the show. Tony - far more interested in the new pajamas - shakes his head as he climbs under the sheets with her. He has a pillow, but he'd much rather arrange himself on her; he comes to a rest against her side, one leg sprawling over hers as he drapes one arm across her waist and rests his still-damp head against her chest where he can listen to heart. It's beating a little faster than late night TV - or even fashion - merits, but he doubts it's because she's uncomfortable.

"Am I crowding you?" he asks, just to test his theory.

"Oh. No." She shifts a little, one hand sliding up his arm to rest on his shoulder while the other starts to gently comb through his hair.

He groans softly, leaning into her hand. "You are EVIL...that's gonna put me to SLEEP."

"Is that a bad thing? If I recall my high school biology classes right, it's certainly natural." There's a hint of…pride…in Pepper's voice.

'Mmmm…definitely evil.' "Don't WANT to sleep..." he informs her, just the tiniest bit petulantly.

Pepper snickers. "That would have more effect if you'd been sucking your thumb too."

He quickly turns his head and catches HER thumb in his mouth. Pepper's gasp sounds loud in the quiet room, but she makes no move to pull her hand away.

"T-tony?"

He releases her hand reluctantly and with a soft "pop." She lets it hover there for a moment as if she's uncertain what to do now, but when he rests his head back on her chest, she returns it to his hair.

"You missed a spot when you washed your hands," he informs her wickedly. Her heart goes "ka-thump, ka-thump" in his ear, but she only slaps his shoulder lightly in retribution.

"Go to sleep," she orders. "I pushed back your first meeting to eleven, but tomorrow's still going to have plenty in it to do..."

"Remind me to give you a raise," he murmurs. "I'll sleep as soon as you do..."

"Just as soon as this episode is finished.

Tony snorts softly. "Don't get what you see in this show."

"Things are either really good or they're a train wreck. As your personal assistant, I can relate on an emotional level."

Tony snorts, eyes drifting shut as she starts to rub his head again. "You'll pay for that one, Potts. Tomorrow."

"Big talk," she teases as she bends her head to kiss the top of his head. He's exhausted and fighting against sleep. Despite the fact he'd gotten to sleep in that morning, he'd also gone to the gym with Rhodey and dinner with the Walsh's had been enough socialization to wear him down. Add a...physical release into that mix, and he was going to be out like a light inside five minute, now that he was in bed.

That little tidbit might be useful knowledge for the future, she mentally noted to herself. Especially now that she knows she can probably handle a repeat. With any luck each time she pushes forward against the nerves in her stomach they'll respond by pushing back less and less. Though, sooner or later they're going to have to address the fact that while she's at ease touching him, she still isn't sure about him returning the favor. One sided - mostly one sided - intimacy is alright for now because at least it's a step forward. Sooner or later though, she's going to have to let the shoe be on the other foot.

'Not tonight though,' she tells herself when Tony fails to respond. Hopefully her little man AND her big man are both down for the count. Momma could do with sleeping through the night for once.

Pepper squeezes Tony a little closer as Tim Gunn starts his critiques.

Maybe this is going to work out better than she'd originally thought.


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N:** well, here it is. I really don't know what else to say, other than I know this isn't an update to Number One Fan. 4persephone and I are working on that one slowly but surely, and in the meantime thanks for hanging in here with us – and with all our stories - and here's a good long chapter as your reward. :)

* * *

Despite all her good intentions, Pepper's internal alarm clock wakes her at the same time dawn makes its first appearance in the sky. She opens her eyes without moving her body and spends several seconds just looking around the darkened room before once again closing her eyes. Cuddling up to Tony's warm, broad back, she sighs. Going back to sleep was going to be hard; she's wide awake, her mind already itching to be off and running.

After another deep sigh, Pepper presses a soft kiss to the back of Tony's neck, just below the flattened curls of his hair. She gently disengages her hand from his sleepy gasp where he's holding it over his chest. "Shh…shh… Go back to sleep," she murmurs as Tony stirs and turns towards her. "If you get up, I'll have to put you to work."

"Oh god," Tony mumbles. "Anything but that." Pepper's lips quirk as Tony snags her pillow and burrows into it. He's so adorable in his sleep that she can't help but press another quick kiss to his earlobe, about the only part of his face not in contact with her pillow. With any luck he'll sleep for a couple more hours, allowing her to get most of the day's work done before they get into the office.

She hadn't really considered it the night before, but this morning she's full of energy and plans and making an appearance with Tony at the office is probably a good idea. And she decides she's going to hire one of the candidates they'd interviewed on Friday and get their paperwork straightened out. Clearly the workflow around here needed to be rerouted. If she could shift most of the day to day paperwork and schedule maintenance to someone else, then she could take over some of the more time intensive work over from Tony, allowing _him_ to focus on R&D and the departmental restructuring that was going to result from the eventual shut down of the weapons manufacturing division.

'And _those_ briefs are going to be a whole 'nother headache,' she tells herself as she gently shuts the door to the bathroom. One that's going to take up the entire afternoon. In preparation for the meeting of the Board on Friday, the departments were all going to pitch their ideas and projections for new, "friendlier" products and services.

"Get a grip," she mutters under her breath as she tries to still the thoughts tumbling through her head. And yet, the alternative to thinking about work was thinking about Tony. Or more specifically, Tony's body. Not that his reaction to her hadn't been…reassuring?...but she wasn't prepared to handle her own reactions yet. "Jarvis, start up the shower, please. And the coffee maker."

"Certainly, Mrs. Stark," Jarvis replies; the shower immediately starts up, steam curling up over the edge of the glass partition. "Would you like to hear the opening stocks for the company and its subsidiaries?"

"Not until after my first cup of coffee. But pull up the file on Bekah Hayes and start her employment paperwork. She will be employed by Mr. Stark, not Stark Industries." Though, officially the woman would be working for _her_, Pepper muses as she gets undressed.

She showers quickly, keeping her mind as focused on work as possible, though it does stray a few times, always leaving her standing under the water in a little bit of a daze. Tony was just…and those _sounds_…and the way he smelled? Did he really have to be so encompassingly _masculine_?

Pepper gives up and turns off the water, drying herself briskly with a bathsheet that probably cost as much as she used to spend on a full set of bed sheets. She yanks herself away from _that_ thought before it can get her into trouble, or at the very least, back into bed.

She finishes drying herself and swipes at the mirror with the damp towel as she reaches for her lotion. Both shoulders and one elbow have been slathered with extra strength "Sensual Amber" body butter from Bath & Body Works when Pepper's attention is caught by the woman in the mirror. Hair deep red and falling in messy curls, lips a shade swollen, skin flushed from the hot shower…

Pepper stares at herself in the mirror with a hard, critical eye. There's a series of bruises on her neck that she can't help but cover with her hand. The last time she'd been covered with bruises, she'd put on heavy layer of makeup and a high collared shirt, and gone to work because work was the best thing she could think of to keep her mind occupied on something that didn't make her want to…vent.

Let it be said that Pepper Potts did not scream. She "vented."

Today though, the kind of venting she wants to do as she stares at the mouth-shaped bruises on her neck and shoulder is of the smile and hum under her breath sort.

She bites her lip as she wipes off a bit more of the mirror with her towel. Tony's response last night had been…gratifying. Ego-boosting even. Certainly enough to reassure her that he wouldn't… That he wouldn't get lost in the moment and surprise her. Or get greedy and demand more from her than she could give yet. It's the "yet" that makes her stand perpendicular to the mirror to study the rest of her nude body.

She's been taking care of herself. She can't tell if she's inspired by Tony or just participating in order to give him moral support, but she's been going to a yoga class three days a week and hitting the treadmill in the gym the other days. Considering the trouble she'd had gaining weight during her pregnancy, there really hadn't been much to lose after having Aaron, and what's left is mostly toned. There's one small, pale stretch mark halfway between her hip and her bellybutton that wasn't there before, which isn't too bad. However, her belly itself is…pooched, or at least, more rounded than it'd been before her pregnancy. She can't tell yet if this is permanent or not, unlike her breasts, which are probably never going to be quite the same after nursing.

A small part of Pepper panics as she takes in the minute physical changes that motherhood has left on her body. As far as she can tell, if Tony's _ever_ been with a woman who's given birth, she'd probably been tucked and lifted and plumped back into pre-baby shape. What if he's…surprised? Her sense of self in sexual matters is already on pretty shaky ground.

…though, the sight of the giant hicky on her neck is still doing some very strange things to her stomach.

"Enough mooning," she chides herself softly as she pulls on her underwear. It's a matching set; something else she hasn't had the courage to wear yet, but today she's got the confidence. Last night she'd suggested to Tony that he stop kowtowing to the Board. Well, maybe the same is true for her, and it's time to stop allowing her – entirely justified, for the record – fears dictate her own behavior.

For that reason, she takes the time to style her hair in the loose curls Tony loves so much and when she finally gets dressed, she pulls on a mock turtleneck shirt that comes up high around her neck and plunges fairly deep on her chest. Still business appropriate, but certainly more daring than her standard office fare.

As for the hickies, she leaves them uncovered by powder. Tony's the only person who'll get close enough to her to see them. And she has the feeling that they'll give him the same little lurch in the stomach that they give her.

* * *

She's _doing_ it.

"The Walk."

That easy, open strided, loose-hipped, shoulders back, head held high _walk_ that he'd always associated with her having gotten a night of good sex. However, Tony knows that's not exactly what happened last night, so the presence of "The Walk" is puzzling. Puzzling and distracting as hell because he can't help but get caught up in it every time she moves – even if it's just across the room. It's a good thing they're married now because he's already been caught staring (i.e. – ogling) a few times, and he'd be hard pressed to explain it if they were still playing at the whole "employer/employee" thing. If they hadn't been cooped up in the executive conference room for the last three hours – with another three in front of them – he probably would have gone insane by now instead of the combination of edgy attentiveness that he was currently feeling. The same feeling that'd had him tapping his foot for a half hour before Pepper – with an almost embarrassingly _knowing_ look – had declared a late lunch.

And lunch has been…nice. Lunch has been relaxed and Pepper's laugh has come freely as she's allowed him to steer the conversation away from business and towards persuading her to turn their trip to New York at the end of the week into an impromptu and abbreviated honeymoon. He tells her they could go sunbathing from the penthouse's deck, and she actually asks if he means they could walk around naked inside the penthouse because no one in their right mind would try to sunbathe in New York in late October. His heart literally skips a beat at the tease, and it isn't until he raises one eyebrow at her over his water glass that she seems to realize what she's said. The rose pink blush that spreads across her cheeks makes him want to lean across the table and nibble on that soft skin; from the way her blush deepens, she knows what he wants to do. From the way her eyes skip away from his and focus on her salad, she doesn't want him to act on it.

So he'd turns the conversation back to New York and the Met, Broadway and the Chelsea Market, and only barely manages to keep from mentioning a side trip to the Museum of Sex, mentioning the MoMA instead. She barely takes any of it seriously – foolish woman, she really should know better – and keeps agreeing in a pacifying manner as if this is one of his flights of fancy that he'll forget as soon as they go back upstairs. But he takes her agreement at face value and starts keeping a mental list of things to get in order so they can have a weekend away for themselves before the holidays set in and they get swept up into a whole new round of firsts – first time to host Thanksgiving, baby's first Christmas, first New Year's kiss…

However, as they return their trays to the cafeteria, Tony's mind turns to other firsts, like the night before and the fact that somehow he's the cause for that languid, rolling, fluid _walk_. Unbelievably, it's was even _better_ to watch from a step behind her than it was to watch from the front, and he takes shameless advantage. He is a married man now; there should be no doubt in anyone's mind just how married he is. Besides, there's no other way to describe the fit of her skirt other than "snug," and when combined with the strut she's working, Tony's mind is firmly set on a first he'd like to see happen as soon as possible. The kind of first that has him hot under the collar and wondering if he needs to slip a hand into his pocket as a preemptive measure. The chance to step into an empty elevator is nothing less than a mercy from heaven.

The ride up is quiet, with Pepper softly reading the list of all the VPs and chairmen and heads of such and such that are still on the docket for the day and Tony ignoring all of it as he tries to inconspicuously rest a hand on her far hip. Since she continues spitting out information at a rate he can't keep up with in his preoccupation, he tugs her a little closer until she's brushing up against him and he only has to slightly tilt his head in order to bury his nose in her loose curls. Even then, her only reaction is to glance up at him and urge him to pay attention. And he does – to the fit of her hip into his palm. He can imagine the way the way it'll undulate under his grasp when they leave the elevator…and when they're doing…other…things.

He can imagine it just a little too clearly, but he likes playing with fire, so he doesn't move his hand away.

When the elevator doors open, Pepper practically springs into motion before Tony even has a chance to react. His hand slides to the small of her back as they stride through the corridors. Pepper, as considerate and businesslike as always, nods to the people they pass. Tony ignores all of them in favor of trying to feel out the give and take of her muscles. Really, it's all in the name of scientific exploration when he allows his hand to slide a little bit lower on her back…and a little lower…and a little more…until they stop in front of the conference room and Pepper turns around to straighten his tie as his hand rests rather possessively on her bottom.

"Married or not, Tony," Pepper murmurs as she tugs on his collar and smoothes out his lapels, "if you don't move your hand now, you're going to lose it."

Her tone is so light and so non-threatening that it takes Tony a moment to process, but when he does, he jerks his hand back up to rest above her waist as he reaches for the handle to the door. "Sorry," he grumbles, more because she made him quit than anything else. However, when she steps away, his attitude quickly changes. "I mean it, Pepper. I'm sorry. We're at work, and you need to be respected for yourself and not because everyone thinks you're sleeping with the boss, and I'm being a bore –"

Her eyes are laughing at him. "If you were any quicker on your feet, you'd be tripping over them. And you didn't listen to a single word I said in the elevator, did you?"

"Uhh…I might have been a little distracted. But Pepper, it's not my fault. There was this _amazing_ redhead in there, and I swear, I couldn't help myself."

"Mmm-hmm." She sounds skeptical. "Next time, more business and less groping, please." She turns to leave, and Tony makes a swift sound of objection as he catches her by the elbow.

"Where are you going?"

"I told you; I need to get Ms. Hayes set up here in the office for the rest of the afternoon. I've had a second desk moved into the workspace off your suite, and besides needing to make sure she's been set up with the appropriate passwords and keycards, I want to give her a tour of the building and a run down of departments, introduce her to the filing system, make sure her workstation is up and running –"

The words wash over him while her actions tell him what he needs to know. He might still have a hand wrapped under her elbow, but she's carefully inching away from the conference room and studiously avoiding looking in the floor to ceiling windows that line the hallway. New meeting, new department…and an issue they've managed circle around but avoid until now.

There's one president and two vice presidents waiting for them inside. Or, waiting for _him_ inside, since the department they're from is marketing. 'Delaney.' Tony's eyes mark the target and his left hand clenches and flexes in a way that would cause serious property damage if he were in his suit right now.

"No." Pepper's voice is soft but insistent. "Tony, don't."

"Don't what?"

She looks pointedly at his hand before glancing inside the room from under her eyelashes. "We haven't said a word to each other in nearly a year now, and he hasn't made any indications that he wants that to change. Just because I don't want to be in a room with him…" Pepper's voice dies off and Tony can feel the tension in her body, can see just how much more rigidly she's holding herself. He wonders if she's going to finish the thought or if she's going to leave him hanging and that much more inclined to be possessive and aggressive when he goes inside. However, that's her choice, and he's not going to push. Not when her lips have thinned to pale lines and her hand in curling in the sleeve of his jacket.

"Pepper…" he intends to tell her that he's not going to force her to talk, but at the sound of his voice, her head rises and she meets his eyes without flinching.

"Yes, he and I were a disaster together. But the reason I can't…that being in a room with him would be…" Her fingers tighten around the fabric in her fist. "I can handle Marcus Delaney, okay? He was a drunken mistake, but he was _my_ drunken mistake. There's just…there are memories of my childhood that I try my best to forget. And _because_ we were a disaster, he brings them all right back to the surface." Her eyes beg him to understand her meaning so that she doesn't have to explicitly say it.

Since he has hard memories of his own, memories that drive him out onto battlefields and into multiple day engineering marathons, Tony just nods so that she doesn't have to admit right now that it's the memory of whatever bastard came _before_ Delaney that makes the man intolerable. It doesn't make him feel any better, and it doesn't lessen the desire to explain a few things to the man with the aid of a set of brass knuckles, but Tony forces himself to find a way to lighten the mood. He's going to have a word with the bastard no matter what, but there's no reason to worry Pepper about it, and every reason for him to want to lift that haunted look from her eyes.

"Fine. But you owe me."

Her mouth drops a little in shock and her eyes blank momentarily before her brows meet in the center and her lips purse a little. "For what?" she asks suspiciously.

"While _you're_ running around having fun, hazing the newbie and terrorizing my employees with an unexpected inspection, _I'm_ going to be stuck here for another three hours listening to reports. And since I'll be here alone, I'm actually going to have to pay attention so that _I_ can fill _you_ in later. I'm not sure I can forgive you for that, Potts."

Pepper ducks her head to hide her smile, but can't help but look back up at him. "Yeah, well, sucks to be the boss, doesn't it? I guess you'll just have to put on your big boy under-roos and deal with it."

"Wow. I don't know what I'd do without your support." And because he is feeling a little possessive and a little aggressive, Tony cups the side of Pepper's face in his hands and kisses her in full view of everyone waiting in the conference room. He keeps the kiss soft and gentle but maintains it longer than really necessary in order to drive home the point that Pepper was claimed territory and all other parties trespassed at their own risk. When she doesn't pull back, he lets his hand trail down her face and over the dim bruises on her neck that she hadn't bothered to cover up. She shivers under his touch and parts her lips for the briefest of seconds before pulling away.

Her eyes are dark and dilated and Tony can't help but taste his lips; Pepper seems to gasp in reaction before taking a short step away.

"I need to go." Her tone implies that she thinks they'll get themselves in trouble if she stays. Which is _more_ than fine with Tony, but she's right about their needing to see to their responsibilities. Sadly.

He nods, presses one last kiss to that mouth that's becoming a slow, quiet addiction. "If I haven't met you up in my office by five-fifteen, come down and spring me."

A smile slowly spreads across Pepper's face. "Aye-aye, Captain." She starts humming the theme from "Gilligan's Island" as she walks away. Tony watches her carefully, noticing that while it has perhaps dimmed in strength, "The Walk" is still present…and remains present until she disappears from sight.

Then, temporarily refocused on getting through the next three hours rather than on tearing through one Marcus Delaney, Tony steps back into the conference room, the lines "…a three hour tour…" echoing through his head.

* * *

Tony Stark has a problem.

Well, that was actually a massive understatement. What he actually has is an immediate problem, one that – due to the windows that opened the entire room up to all and sundry in the hall outside – lacked a swift, satisfying, physical resolution.

Tony contemplates the problem most immediately confronting him as Vic Weiss – president of SI Marketing (North American Division) – wraps up his department's presentation. It's primarily been a summation of the current studies they had going in cooperation with Product Development. Normally, Tony's interest reports that took their time in stating further study was needed was next to nil. But Vic's reports had gotten remarkably tolerable over the last few years, and his own interest in new non-military applications considerably more keen.

He mentions the improvement in the readability of the reports as the team gathers their presentation materials.

Vic chuckles and points straight at Marcus Delaney. "Thank the Communications major over there. I put him in charge of all the department's write-ups as part of his last promotion. We haven't had a single complaint about them since."

"Sounds like you've been fortunate," Tony murmurs. The implication isn't lost on him; Delaney has clearly found a niche in the department. However, the callout also gives him an opening. "Why don't you hang back for a minute, Marco." Despite the phrasing, it's clearly not a question, and Tony taps his fingers on the folio in front of him in impatience as he waits for the room to clear. The other two men might believe that he has nothing more on his mind than a few additional questions about the presentation, or perhaps that the CEO's interest in an up and coming young exec has been perked. However, the look of polite, blank interest on Delaney's face indicates that he at least has some understanding that the topic about to be under discussion isn't going to be business related.

Tony sees the two other men out, briefly wondering once again why these windows didn't have blinds, or shades, or some kind of means for ensuring privacy of some manner. He determines yet again to replace the panes with smart glass, and relies for now on the closed door to speak for itself and keep the next round of meetings out until he's dealt with far more pressing business.

He turns, not unsurprised to find Delaney across the room, table separating them and slight look of unease on the other man's face. In all honesty, Tony felt a touch of that same feeling. He didn't know what he was doing, or what he was going to say, just that something needed to be done and something needed to be said. And he knew was that it was best to leave all threats of physical violence trapped firmly in his head, so he could plead for leniency later.

Because, there was no way that Pepper wasn't going to _somehow_ find out about this.

"So…how are Pepper and her baby?"

Tony's a little surprised when the younger man is the first one to speak. His voice is a hesitant tenor, and the way he doesn't try to meet Tony's eyes is indicative of discomfort.

'As well he should be,' Tony grumbles to himself. In nature there are consequences for challenging the alpha male, and even if he can't respond to the challenge the way he wants to – and anyone who messed with his personal assistant, much less his wife, _was_ issuing a challenge – he wants Delaney to be damn well aware of what he _could_ do in response.i

"My wife and son are both fine," he says pointedly. After the way he'd kissed Pepper in the hallway, his claim was probably pretty clear at this point. However, the acknowledgement of the new relationships – wife and son rather than assistant and her child – hopefully established a basis for retribution.

Delaney nods. "I, uh… I'm glad things worked out. For all of you." He rubs the back of his head. "Look, can I be frank, sir?" The polite title sounded a touch grudging, but Tone was willing to overlook it, considering he was just as happy to proceed without the formalities. Nothing much was ever said when people were dancing around manners.

"By all means." Tony hitches one hip against the long conference table.

Delaney nods, and says, "I like my job. And frankly, I'm damn good at it." Any uncertainly has been consumed by a display of confidence. "I was damn good at it when we were merely selling weapons, and variations thereof, for an unpopular war, and that hasn't changed now that what we're trying to sell the public is a new image. I don't want the fact that I stepped on your toes to cost me my job. Like I'm sure Pepper told you before you sent her away, I have no intention to ever claim the kid in any way. That hasn't changed now that the two of you have gotten your act together. And even if I _was_ inclined to blackmail you or make such a nuisance of myself that you'd pay me to go away, it'd not only do irreparable harm to my career, but I'd certainly come out the loser in the press. To be blunt, it's just not worth it."

Tony snorts softly, "How very self enlightened of you."

Delaney winces, as if perhaps aware how very cold he sounded. "That didn't come out quite as I intended. I have nothing but respect for both you and Pepper."

"Mrs Stark." Tony says the words bluntly. Delaney's look is blank, as if he doesn't understand why the distinction is being made. 'Nothing but respect and not a clue to any of the repercussions his relationship with Pepper led to.' It makes Tony a little heartsick, not just for Pepper, but he has to wonder what kind of bruises he's left behind in over a decade of passing through some of the nation's finest bedrooms.

Though, his status (and bankroll) at least almost virtually ensures that he doesn't have any unknown progeny floating around out there.

"While you might be willing to let bygones be bygones," Tony finally says, "I'm not. Being in close quarters with you makes Mrs. Stark uncomfortable, for reasons of her own. And while she's willing to be a martyr and overlook her own discomfort, I'm sure as hell not going to stand by and watch her suffer in silence. So…you and I are going to make a deal. This last is said with his usual arrogance and a slight smile and Delaney at long last seems to grasp that he's tread where he is not welcome.

"At this time, I have no grounds to justify a termination of employment, nor do I have sufficient personal grounds to transfer you to the New York offices or even farther abroad. As much as I want to settle Pepper's mind where you're concerned, neither do I want to provoke her by being too overbearing. So here's what I've decided: from now on any business related contact between you and I will now go through Ms. Hayes, who Pepper has recently hired as an assistant." And who would be receiving a very specific set of instructions about what duties Tony expected her to take on her boss's behalf. "Any personal contact you feel is necessary can be handled by our lawyers. Deviation from these conditions will result in a transfer – Pepper's wrath be damned – with the provision that there be no loss of position or responsibility. If I'm not mistaken, you're due for a promotion in a few more years anyway."

Delaney nods cautiously. "I believe you've made yourself quite clear, sir."

'I doubt that.' However, this is neither the time nor the place to go into detail about what Tony suspects about Delaney's sex life. Being a jackass wasn't the sort of behavior you could be nudged out of. For now Tony would content himself with reviewing, and revising if necessary, the company sexual harassment guidelines before passing them off to Legal and HR for dissemination. And perhaps see if it was legal to require new background checks for all employees up for promotion. Having a record down at HR didn't do a damn bit of good if misbehavior happened outside of the work place.

"If that's the case, you can go. I believe I have a meeting with human resources next." And after that, with finance. Pepper always made sure to stick meetings with the non-engineering types at the end of the day, her way of safeguarding her schedule.

However, as Delaney left, Tony couldn't help but wonder. If having a child out of wedlock wasn't enough to slap a man into reality, what was it going to take?

* * *

Going to pick out Halloween pumpkins in Southern California is vastly different from the visits to pumpkin patches that Pepper remembers from school fieldtrips in her childhood. There's no mud and no hay rides and no fields stretching on and on. What there is, is a manicured lawn and what seem to be carefully placed gourds every foot or so.

But then, children attending public schools usually don't have to worry about having a childhood experience ruined by a mob of photographers with royalty checks on the brain. And, Pepper has to admit that going the highly exclusive, terribly expensive route has spared any unwanted interruptions. She can pick out one or two photographers with high range lenses, but they must be at least half football field away from even the edges of the property. One bundled up baby, held immobile in a parent's arms is unlike to have the same allure of the other celebrity children – and parents – moving around and generally acting far more interesting.

Pepper sighs heavily, then looks down at her two boys and sighs again – this time in contentment as Tony seriously explains the characteristics that make up the perfect carving pumpkin to Aaron, who stares intently back.

"How did I let you talk me into this?" she asks for the umpteenth time. Yes, they'd both been cooped up by meetings all day, but clearly, when she'd told Tony how much she'd been looking forward to a quiet evening at home with Aaron that evening, her idea of a quiet evening had somehow gotten lost in translation. "Halloween isn't for almost two weeks still."

Not that Pepper really minded. Tony's enthusiasm when it came to carving pumpkins had always been infectious.

Also infectious are the little touches he's been gifting her with all day long. Whether it was offering an elbow for her to tuck a hand into as they'd walked into the office that morning, or his blatantly inappropriate and – if she knows him as well as she thinks she does – completely unintentional groping session after lunch, he's maintained a presence within her personal bubble. Which has never left her in a position where she's had to once again start reacquainting herself with the sensations he causes. It's also led to more than a few strokes and pats initiated by Pepper herself. Even now, she steps closer to him and casually slips her hand into his back pocket as she asks, "Don't you think this might be a _little_ precipitous?"

"Pumpkin carving is serious business, Mrs. Stark. You need to have adequate time." Tony grins, shifting his grip on Aaron slightly. "So what you think, bud? Is this a good number one?"

"Number _one_?" 'How many does he think are necessary...?'

"Per family tradition we need one for every person in the house."

"You have a loose definition of 'one' then, Mr. Stark," Pepper teases. In the past, Tony has cooked up some truly impressive creations, sometimes utilizing as many as eight pumpkins. "Your definition of family could also use some revision." Since Tony has dragged her along on these expeditions for at least the last five years, it's a valid point. Though, usually her involvement ended at picking a pumpkin.

He ignores the last statement with a roll of his eyes. "I had assumed one for each of us, Amelia, your brother, and the Platypus." He pauses, "Then of course there's Butterfingers, Dummy, Happy and Jarvis..." He looks back over his shoulder at her. "Did...were you and Mick hoping to invite his mother as well?"

"You just like sticking your hands in pumpkin guts," she accuses as she tries to frame an answer and tug Aaron's hat down around his ears at the same time. It's the cutest thing – the hat – stripes of white, orange and sky blue with a long trailing peak that ends in a tassel. However, the tassel is far too interesting to remain unmolested, and Aaron keeps pulling on it and sticking it in his mouth.

"Firstly, there's nearly a month's difference between Halloween and Thanksgiving, and I already have my doubts about these pumpkins even making it to the 31st without getting moldy. Secondly..." Pepper doesn't really know how to frame her reply. Tony's family, while small, had been very close. One where not extending an invitation to one's mother for important National holiday celebrations was unthinkable.

She can feel Tony's eyes on her as she fusses with Aaron's hat a little longer than necessary. "While it's true that Janice and I aren't, uh, fond of each other...she's had a hard time accepting that the son she raised 'the right way' is unashamedly bi-sexual. That, and he looks so much like our father that even that resemblance brings it's own set of tensions..." She shakes her head. "We've never been a Sunday dinner sort of family," she concludes weakly.

Tony tilts his head. "But didn't Mick say she was showing renewed interest in trying to find common ground...in part for the sake of the baby?" He's hesitant to press the issue...well aware of the understated pain the subject represents. At the same time though he also recognized that Aaron himself represented at least the chance of new beginnings.

Pepper shrugs. "I don't...I mean, I guess I don't mind trying to mend fences, because she is the only grandparent Aaron has left. And that should mean something. But Thanksgiving is going to be our first real holiday together as a family. I would just prefer not to have to sweep that minefield at the same time. I'd rather enjoy being with you."

Tony nods, cheeks flushing in pleasure at her admission. It's still strange to hear Pepper express any need at all, not to mention a need to be with him. "I can understand that. It's not like we gave her any warning either, she may have made other plans. Still, maybe we should think of inviting her out here to LA this summer or something..." He shrugs. "Just a thought to bring up with Mick."

Pepper nods, relaxing when it's clear that Tony's not going to push the point. "So...you want to get..." She recounts the "family" members they need pumpkins for. "Ten pumpkins?" That's one for her, Tony, and Aaron; Jarvis, Butterfingers and Dummy; Happy, Rhodey, Kara, and now "Becks" - as she'd already heard him refer to her new assistant. Though he'd left the last two out of his original list. Still, Kara spent more than enough time at the house with Aaron, and Bekah was going to be doing so.

"Sounds good to me....and maybe a couple extras, just in case there's carving problems."

"You realize you're on your own when it comes to hauling these things, right?" Pepper shakes her head and holds out her arms. "Com'on, baby. Let's go get Poppa a wagon or two." He's going to end up with a pumpkin 'last supper' at this rate.

She nearly chokes on the thought of an "Iron Gourd" display, complete with candlelight implant and repulsors. Self preservation keeps her mouth shut; if Tony hasn't thought of it already, she's certainly not going to clue him in.

"See if I share any of the roasted seeds with you..." He replies with a smirk as he hands Aaron over. The boy coos and makes several uncoordinated, jerky bounces in Pepper's arms before his hands reach for the vibrant strands of her hair.

"To the victor go the spoils?" Pepper asks as she gives up on the hat and just pulls it off, causing Aaron's own fine red hair to stick up in all directions. She laughs as she tries to pat it down, ignoring the small flash at the corner of her eye. The paparazzi are unwelcome, but Tony has become quite the photographer in the last couple of months. Baby's first pumpkin was apparently a momentous occasion.

"Mmmhmmm...I also want to see if I can dig up my mom's old recipe for pumpkin bread and pumpkin soup." There's a wistfulness in his tone...though thankfully not any pain. More like nostalgia. Tony's been talking more about his own childhood in recent days.

"You know that pumpkin comes in cans, right?" Pepper gives up on Aaron's hair and just hands him the hat he's fussing for. The tassel on the end goes right back into his mouth, and around the poof she can see the gigantic smile on his face.

"Maybe, but trust me, it doesn't taste anywhere near as good..."

"I'm also not spending hours boiling down pumpkin," she warns. "In this family we have an equal division of labor - I'll have the kids, but you have to be the one barefoot in the kitchen." When Tony just grins, she cocks her head. This beyond his normal good cheer. "You really like Halloween don't you?"

"It and Thanksgiving were my dad's favorite holidays. Tony snickers, "Did I ever tell you that when my folks were still alive, Dad used to build an animatronic funhouse every year?"

"Really?"

"Yeah...complete with a pair of hands that reached out to grab you at the bottom step of the stairs..."

Pepper listens to the warmth in Tony's voice and thinks that if nothing else was wonderful and amazing and good about having Aaron in their lives, then the way that Tony now opens up about his own childhood would be worth it all. Having a family of his own has seemed to ease the pain of having lost his first.

"You lied to me," she says suddenly, causing Tony's eyes to pop open and his mouth to drop. "You are nostalgic."

"I am not." He replies almost automatically, as if the charge is somehow damaging instead of humanizing.

Pepper steps close and taps the camera in his hand. "Whatever you say, Mr. 'Let's take one more for prosperity.'"

"Ah come on, Pep...we have only so many years to score really good blackmail shots for the teenage years...besides," he coughs into his hand. "Wright and Rhodey keep harassing me for them..."

"Oh yes. How could I have considered it was anything else?" Pepper rolls her eyes and presses a kiss to his cheek. "I'm going to go get a wagon. You get to work so we can go home. After Bekah's tour this afternoon, my feet are killing me."

Tony nods. "She seems...acceptable. She'll do I mean. She's not too obnoxious. Very task oriented." He waggles his brows at Peppers 'harumph'. "As for your feet...how about a foot spa and then a foot rub after the three of us get home?"

Pepper practically moans at the idea. "I think that would win you my nomination for husband of the year."

"All right then. Can't very well get lax about my rankings." He steps marginally closer, hand resting on her waist as he plots to do something else about his "ranking."

"I'll keep that in mind." Pepper certainly looks agreeable about his planned PDA, but the mood breaks when she laughs as Aaron abruptly ends the conversation by reaching out and honking Tony's nose. Tony retaliates by leaning down and snarfling Aaron's neck until the boy squeals and throws himself back in Pepper's arms.

"Send Happy back with the wheelbarrows?" he requests.

She nods. "Want us to wait for you or should Aaron and I head for the petting zoo?"

"You can head for the zoo. Do you want a pumpkin that's round or one that's tall?"

"You decide. You're the one who's going to carve it." Pepper waits until Tony's snarfled Aaron's neck one last time, then leaves him to his careful deliberations. "Com'on, Little Man...let's go meet the goats."


End file.
